Quote the Pauper Forevermore
by YinYangWriter
Summary: "Never to suffer would never to have been blessed." -Edgar Allen Poe. And, oh, how this child has suffered, yet has the strength to go on. Through the eyes of a fighter, the Fellowship will see things in a different light. 21st century teen in Middle Earth, 10th Walker.
1. The Boy with the Strange Tongue

**I know, I know, I said I was going to get all of my old stuff done first before I started posting new material, but I wanted to try something new. And since I'm down to two incomplete projects instead of fie, I figured that this would be a good time. That and I've been hyping this on my profile page and a few author's notes in other stories.**

 **I decided to do a teen in Middle Earth story with a little bit of a twist after I sat down examined the Fellowship. I noticed that all of the members may have seen hard times, but at some point in their lives they wanted for nothing. Gandalf is friends and loved by many and if he wasn't so much of a wanderer, he would be able to live in a palace. Aragorn was raised in Rivendell; Boromir is the son of the Steward of Gondor; Legolas is a prince; the Baggins were wealthy and Bilbo passed it on to Bilbo; Pippin's a Took, related to Old Took; Merry is a Brandybuck, a well-known family; and Sam, though a gardener, would have been well paid. Sam would be more middle working class, but none of the Fellowship were ever dirt poor.**

 **And since someone from the 21** **st** **century falling into Middle Earth can be a bit interesting, I thought "What the hay? Let's do it." Some of my favorite LOTR stories were GiME fics. Now for the warnings: this story is going to heavily rely on the movies and the script. Also 10** **th** **Walker and OC.**

 **Speaking of OC, allow me to say something about him. His accent: Yes, I wrote it phonetically and I may not have gotten it spot on. I'm not trying to insult anyone, so I'm sorry ahead of time if it's a bit hard to read, but you got to remember that the people of Middle Earth have a hard time understanding him as well.**

 **I do not own Lord of the Rings, but the OC is mine. Please review at the end of the chapter and let me know what you think.**

* * *

Gandalf sat shivering on top of the Orthanc. Thankfully the rain had stopped, but the Grey Wizard was drenched to the skin. The wind only made him colder and it appeared that there would be no source of heat until the sun rose in the morning. Saruman had hoped that it would loosen Gandalf's tongue about the Ring. However, Gandalf was refusing to tell.

Saruman's betrayal had been unexpected. The White Wizard had been the wisest and most powerful of the Istari, but he had forgotten their purpose in Middle Earth. He wanted power, to rule, and was siding with Sauron for it.

Saruman appeared, holding a squirming figure. It was a boy! Not very young, but clearly still young enough to be at home with his mother. Saruman had a vicelike grip on the boy's neck, keeping him from going anywhere.

"I thought you would need some persuasion, old friend," Saruman said. He let go of the boy and swung his staff.

The boy let out a yell as he was pushed to the edge of the roof by Saruman's magic. The magic had also bound him so he couldn't move.

"I think a trade is in order," Saruman continued. "The Ring's location for the boy's life."

Gandalf looked at the boy perched precariously on the edge of the roof. His pale face was bruised, but his eyes were defiant.

"Well?" Saruman prompted.

"Don't tell 'im nuthin'!" the boy shouted at Gandalf.

"Silence!" Saruman barked.

The boy's mouth snapped shut, but he grumbled through the magical gag.

Saruman turned back to Gandalf. "You were never one to let the innocent perish. You can save one here and now."

Gandalf looked at the boy. The boy shook his head. Gandalf looked back at Saruman.

Saruman snarled. "Fine."

There was a final push to the boy and he slipped off the edge. A yelp told Gandalf that Saruman had released him from his magical bounds.

"His death is on your hands," Saruman told Gandalf loudly. "If the life of another will not loosen your tongue, perhaps your own life will."

Saruman whipped his staff around, sending Gandalf sliding across the roof. He continued to use his magic to throw Gandalf around like a rag doll.

"A friendship with Saruman is not lightly thrown aside," gloated the White Wizard. He held Gandalf over the side of the tower. "One ill turn deserves another."

A moth fluttered over Gandalf's face.

"Embrace the power of the Ring or embrace your own destruction." Saruman pulled Gandalf up and forced him face down on the ground with a wave of his staff.

"There is only one Lord of the Ring," Gandalf said, looking up. Blood was running down a cut on his forehead.

From behind Saruman, where the boy had been pushed off, someone was pulling themselves up from the edge. Gandalf saw that the boy had managed to grab something on the way down and was now pulling himself up. The boy pulled himself up over the side and Gandalf returned his attention to Saruman.

"Only one who can bend it to his will. And he does not share power."

Saruman lifted his staff to finish off Gandalf.

The boy let out a yell and tackled Saruman from behind. At the same time, an eagle cried out. Gandalf got to his feet and grabbed the boy by the arm.

"Come on!" he yelled and they both jumped.

They fell before landing on the back of a giant eagle and were flown away from Isengard.

Gandalf had the boy tucked under him to keep him steady on the back of the eagle. This was his first good look at him. He had clothes that were made very well, but were dirty and worn to the point they were falling apart. The loose-fitting pants were made of a heavy material, but were stained so badly it was impossible to tell what color they originally were. The thick oversized tunic with a hood appeared to be black. On his head was a knitted hat with a black cloth tied around underneath.

"Dat's up ahn my tahp ten list of da craziest shit I've done," the boy said. His accent was strange and Gandalf was having difficulty understanding him.

"Are you hurt?" Gandalf asked.

"I'm fine. You?"

Gandalf wiped at the blood on his forehead. "I will heal."

The boy nodded and pulled something onto his face from around his neck.

Gandalf saw the boy was wearing dark grey fingerless gloves. He wasn't sure what the boy had pulled onto his face. Two pieces of oval glass came over his eyes and were held in place by a leather strap around his head. The glass was a little dirty, but apparently the boy could see out.

"Dat's bettah."

Gandalf noticed he was wearing another one around his neck. He also noticed the boy had a pack. The pack was dark and had patches of silver.

They continued over the mountains until the sun rose, not saying anything.

"I never asked your name," Gandalf said. "My name is Gandalf the Grey."

The boy looked over his shoulder with a smirk. "Can't imagine why. Mine's Ricky. Ricky Weiss."

"I must say, Master Weiss, I have not seen clothes like yours," Gandalf commented. "Where are you from?"

"New York," Ricky replied.

Gandalf frowned. "I do not believe I have ever heard of New York. I have traveled Middle Earth for many years and I have never heard a town by that name."

Ricky snorted. "New York's naht a town, it's a city. And Saruman didn't know, eitha."

Gandalf was very puzzled by the boy's accent. He was dropping certain R's, but heavily stressing others, like in Saruman's name, and barely pronouncing the rest of them. Also the TH sound came out sounding like a soft D sound. The rest of the accent sounded whiny. It was an accent that Gandalf had never heard before. Clearly the boy was from some far away land.

There was more silence.

"Way we goin'?" Ricky asked.

"To meet with some friends," said Gandalf. "I was supposed to meet with them days ago."

The eagle flew over one more mountain and it opened into a valley. There were buildings built into the mountains surrounding it. Many waterfalls flowed down into a single river at the bottom of the valley. The buildings were elegant, arches and columns reaching and branching like trees and water.

Gandalf watched Ricky's expression morph into something of awe. It was clear he had never seen anything like Rivendell before.

"Don't see nuthin' like dat in New York," Ricky said.

Gandalf chuckled. "Rivendell, the Last Homely Home East of the Sea. They are expecting me, but they will not turn away one in need."

The eagle landed and several Elves came out.

Gandalf and Ricky climbed down from the eagle.

"Mithrandir," an Elf called to them. He had long brown hair held back with a silver circlet and dark colored robes.

"Lindir," Gandalf answered him.

" _We have been expecting you,_ " said Lindir.

" _I must speak to Lord Elrond,_ " Gandalf told him urgently.

" _You will see him immediately,_ " Lindir informed with a nod. He turned to Ricky. " _And who is your companion?_ "

Gandalf reached around and motioned to Ricky. "This is Ricky Weiss. He was being held as a prisoner. He aided me in my time of need and I thought I should return the favor." Gandalf went to put a hand on Ricky's shoulder, but saw him flinch. He lowered his hand. "I believe he could use some clean clothes and a good meal."

"A bath will be arranged as well," Lindir added, looking down at Ricky. "Come, Master Weiss."

Ricky glanced at Gandalf and followed Lindir.

The sun was steadily rising as they walked the open hallways to the guest chambers.

"These will be your chambers while you reside here," Lindir announced, stopping in front of one of the doors. He turned and saw Ricky had changed his strange eye covering along the way. The darkened glass was nearly impossible for Lindir to see through to Ricky's eyes and the Elf wondered how Ricky could see through them.

"M'eyes hoit," Ricky explained. "Not used t' bein' out in da daylight."

Lindir could see understanding the boy would be a challenge. He was speaking Common Tongue, but the accent was foreign to him. It was almost another language.

"I will bring you clean clothes and take your clothes to be cleaned," Lindir said. "There is a bathing chamber in your rooms. You can leave your clothes outside of the door and I will leave you your clean clothes."

"T'anks," Ricky said softly.

Lindir gave a small bow and left the room.

The boy was going to cause quite the stir around Rivendell. Lindir decided that in order to learn as much as he could about the boy, he would need to act as a simple servant. The interaction would give him the chance to get to know the boy and be able to report to Lord Elrond about him.

A short time later, Lindir returned. He knocked on the chambers' door and received no answer. Assuming that the boy was in the bath, Lindir let himself in and went to the bathing chamber door. There were no clothes left outside on the floor.

Lindir knocked on the door. "Master Weiss, I am here to take your clothes. I have a set of fresh clothes for you."

Ricky opened the door. He had one large towel wrapped around his waist and another large towel draped over his head, the long ends hanging across his chest and to his waist.

Lindir could see how thin Ricky was. The boy didn't have an ounce of fat on him. His hands, arms, and legs were covered in marks and bruises, most of them healing, but there was a nasty bruise on his left shin. Green eyes had dark circles around them, but those could have been bruises and not caused by lack of sleep. The bruise on his face from earlier had come out and was an ugly shade of purple against his pale skin.

Ricky was squinting in the light.

Lindir held out the clean clothes. "I brought you clean clothes for you."

Ricky took the clothes and kicked his soiled ones out the door. "T'anks." He closed the door.

Lindir picked up the pile of dirty clothes and held them again from him. They were disgusting! The boy must have been around Orcs at some point for his clothes to be so filthy.

Lindir winced. The boy had come with Gandalf. Perhaps had been taken from his village by Orcs. But for what purpose? Orcs usually killed and didn't take prisoners unless it was for their entertainment. Lindir shuddered at the thought. Young Ricky was very fortunate if that happened.

After taking Ricky's clothes to the laundry, Lindir went to report to Lord Elrond.

The Elf lord was in his study speaking to Gandalf.

"My lord," Lindir said from the doorway.

"What is it?" asked Elrond. Now was not the time to be interrupted.

"It is about the boy who came with Gandalf," Lindir replied.

"Ricky? What has happened?" asked Gandalf.

"I saw him as he was coming out of the bath. His body is covered in strange marks and bruises," Lindir reported. "He is naught but skin and bones. The boy is in need of healing, my lord. I thought you and Mithrandir should know."

"I will see to him shortly," said Elrond. "Thank you, Lindir."

Lindir bowed his head and left.

Elrond turned to Gandalf. "Do you know how long he was held by Saruman?"

"No," replied Gandalf. "Saruman brought him up with him in his final attempt to learn the Ring's location. Ricky was still fighting, so I believe it was not for long. He would be in worse condition if the Orcs had their way."

"Do you think he can tell us Saruman's plans?"

Gandalf thought about it for a moment. "Ricky may have overheard something."

"Hopefully it will be something to help us," said Elrond.

Gandalf agreed. "I believe it is time for breakfast. Perhaps we should wait until the boy has been properly fed before we begin questioning him."

"I agree," said Elrond. "If he is as thin as Lindir says, food may loosen his tongue."

"You don't believe that Ricky is a spy, do you?" Gandalf asked.

"I did not believe that Saruman would betray us," Elrond countered. "These are dangerous times; we must be suspicious of everyone."

"Are you suspicious of me?" Gandalf asked Elrond.

"I am always suspicious of you, my friend," Elrond replied with a small smirk. "I have known you long enough to know you try to do the best for Middle Earth, though not everyone agrees with your methods. Many would call it meddling."

Gandalf chuckled.

They went their separate ways before they would meet again at the breakfast table. Elrond thought it best to see to the boy. After gathering the necessary supplies to treat wounds, the Elf lord went to Ricky's room.

He knocked on the door and on the other side he heard, "Whadiya gotta do t' get some peace around hea?"

Elrond felt a slightly guilty. The boy was probably trying to sleep.

Ricky opened the door and jumped back, startled. "Whoa, crap!" he breathed. He started to withdraw into the room, intimidated by the Elf's appearance, but stopped and held his ground once he realized he was pulling back.

Elrond had to commend Ricky. Elves were beautiful in face and form and some Men would stare in awe of them. Others were intimidated by Elves, sensing that they were capable of great things, fearing their power. Ricky fell into the latter category, yet was summoning the courage to face Elrond.

Ricky had changed into the clothes that had been provided for him. He wore a light blue tunic and grey trousers. Both articles of clothing were too large for him and hung off his small frame. The belt that was loaned to him was on the last notch and was still a little loose. However, the boy still wore his knit hat and little headscarf, but both looked to be clean though a bit damp. A few short dark hairs stuck out from underneath on his brow. The eye covering he was wearing had the tinted glass. The mix of foreign and Elvish clothing looked very odd.

Elrond smiled at Ricky. "Welcome to Rivendell, Master Weiss. I am Lord Elrond."

"Hello," Ricky whispered.

Elrond looked at the boy's bruised face. "I brought a cream to help aid the healing process. Would you like to use some?"

Ricky nodded. He pulled down his eye covering. "I can do it myself," he said.

Elrond handing him the jar and Ricky applied a layer to his bruise.

"It is time for the morning meal," Elrond informed him. "You may join me if you wish."

"Okay," Ricky said quietly.

Elrond put his hand out to Ricky. "Come."

Ricky flinched away from the hand.

Elrond's smile didn't falter, but he was concerned about why a simple gesture would elicit such a reaction. Perhaps the boy was told stories of Elves meant to scare him. Elrond allowed the boy to follow a step behind him. As they walked to the dining room, Elrond would glance over his shoulder to see if Ricky was following. The boy was following, but he was just out of reach if Elrond should turn and grab him.

There were two other Elves already in the dining area sitting down to eat. They were identical with their long dark hair, grey eyes, and matching blue tunics and grey pants. They were clearly related to Elrond with their similar facial features. There was also an aura of youth around them that wasn't around Elrond, making them appear younger.

Elrond addressed them. "Elladan. Elrohir."

The twins turned in their chairs.

"We have a guest," said Elrond, motioning to Ricky. "This is Ricky Weiss. He arrived with Mithrandir. Master Weiss, these are my sons, Elladan and Elrohir."

"Welcome," the twins said in unison.

"Hey," Ricky said quietly.

Elrond pointed out what seat Ricky was to sit in. Breakfast started out quietly. Ricky nibbled at the food he put on his plate and sipped at the water in his cup.

" _We heard Lindir talking about him,_ " Elladan said to Elrond. " _He said the boy speaks in an odd dialect._ "

" _He has said very little to me, Elladan,_ " Elrond said. " _And it is rude to say such things. You know this. Mithrandir has said something similar as well. He says he is from distant land._ "

Gandalf joined them a few minutes later. "Ah, Ricky, you look much better."

Ricky glanced up from his food and continued eating.

"Perhaps you would like to tell me how you came to be a prisoner of Saruman," said Gandalf.

Ricky put down the boiled egg he had bitten into. "Dunno how much I'll be able t' tell you."

"Start at the beginning," Gandalf told Ricky.

Ricky nodded. "Woke up in da woods afta I got jumped in da tunnels. It happens when you piss awf da wrong people – da gettin' jumped part. I don't rememba bein' dat scared've bein' in da woods. I've been in Central Park at night befo', but bein' out dere in da middle of da day, dat scared da hell outta me. Only took me a few minutes t' haul ass outta dat place. Saruman found me an ow-wah laydah."

"Fangorn Forest is an ancient forest," said Elrond. "It is alive and full of memory."

"I just know dat I wanted t' get da hell outta dere," Ricky said again.

"What happened when Saruman found you?" Gandalf asked.

"Basically da same t'ing dat's happenin' now," said Ricky, eyes shifting under the tinted glass. "Gave me somethin' t' eat, wanted t' know way I was from. I only told him I was from New York. Somethin' 'bout him made me t'ink twice 'bout answoi'in' his questions. He got pissed when I shaddup. Tried t' scare me into tellin' him what he wanted t' know. Next t'ing I know, I'm up ahn da roof. You know da rest, Gandalf."

Ricky went back to his boiled egg.

"What about this 'New York'?" asked Gandalf. "What can you tell us about your home?"

Ricky swallowed his food. "Completely diffoirent tan dis. Elves, magic, an' giant eagles don't exist."

After several seconds of silence from Ricky after he went back to his food, it was clear he wasn't going to say anything more on the subject.

"Perhaps you are from another world, young Ricky," Gandalf suggested.

Ricky rolled his eyes behind his goggles. "Ya couldn't tell?" he asked sarcastically.

"There must be a reason you were brought to us," Gandalf continued.

Ricky snorted. "Wonda what dat could be."

They ignored Ricky's comment and instead took notice to how he was holding himself.

"There is no need to be frightened, Master Weiss," Elrond assured. "We will help you."

"Not sca'ed – cold," Ricky said quietly.

" _Little wonder,_ " Elrohir commented. " _He is skin and bone._ "

"Elrohir," Elrond scolded gently. He turned to Ricky. "We will find you something warmer."

Ricky just gave a shake of his head. "Just gimme back my clothes. I'm wah'm enough wit' dose."

Elrond gave a nod. "Elladan and Elrohir will show you around Rivendell when you are finished with breakfast."

Ricky quickly chugged down the last of his water. The boy wanted to get away from the table as quick as possible. He didn't want a repeat of what happened with Saruman.

"You do not have to rush," Elladan chuckled lightly.

Elohir smiled. "He certainly wants to see Rivendell."

Elladan, Elrohir, and Ricky left the table. Once again, Ricky followed so he wouldn't be easily touched.

Elrond and Gandalf remained at the table.

"The boy is troubled greatly," said Elrond.

"He has been taken from his world and put into one he knows nothing about," said Gandalf. "You cannot fault him for that."

"I do not," said Elrond. "I have noticed he shies away from simple touches. His speech and what little he has told us about where he lives suggests he is of low class."

"He needs healing," said Gandalf.

"And Rivendell will give it to him," Elrond added.

Elladan and Elrohir showed Ricky around Rivendell. Their favorite place was the training grounds. And they were not the only ones at the training grounds that morning.

"Lord Glorfindel!" the twins called.

The tall golden haired Elf turned to the twins and their charge. " _Good morning. And who is this?_ "

"This is Ricky Weiss," said Elrohir. "He arrived with Mithrandir this morning."

"Ricky," repeated Glorfindel. "The name sounds dwarfish."

"He is no Dwarf," said Elladan. "Not with that little nose."

Glorfindel looked down at Ricky smiled. "My name is Glorfindel, little one. If you came with Gandalf, you certainly had quite the journey."

" _Saruman has betrayed us,_ " Elladan told Glorfindel. " _He captured Mithrandir and later Ricky._ "

" _Why would Saruman want this boy?_ " Glorfindel asked.

" _Mithrandir says the boy is from another world,_ " said Elrohir.

" _And by his speech, it is possible,_ " said Elladan.

Glorfindel smiled down at Ricky. "Do you know how to shoot a bow, Master Ricky?"

"No," Ricky replied.

"Would you like to learn?"

Ricky hesitated. "Okay."

It was a challenge finding a bow for Ricky to use. He was mortal and very skinny and it was difficult finding a bow calibrated to someone with Ricky's strength. All three Elves were aware how Ricky flinched when they physically corrected his stance. He didn't say anything aside from asking if he was doing it correctly.

"You are doing very well," said Glorfindel.

"I suck," Ricky said, looking at all the arrows that hadn't made the target. "Naht even close."

"We did not expect you to make the target on the first try," said Elladan.

"If you took off your eye covering, you may be able to aim better," Elrohir suggested.

"If I take dem awf, I won't be able t' see," said Ricky.

"Then how do you see to defend yourself?" asked Elrohir.

"Can see fine wit' dem. I can take ca'e of myself. Usually could outrun da basta'ds anyway."

"You must be very quick on your feet," said Glorfindel.

"It ain't aw'ways about speed," said Ricky. "Half dose guys can't see dat well in da tunnels. All I had t' do was get dem in da dah'k. I'd lose dem or I'd fight. I ain't bad wit' a straight rayza. You'd be surprised what you can do wit' somethin' so smaw."

"We can train you," said Elladan.

"I know how t' fight," Ricky insisted.

"You know how to run away," Elrohir said.

"Da hell!" snapped Ricky.

Glorfindel quickly stopped a fight from happening. "I propose a sparring match. It will give us an idea of Ricky's abilities. Ricky, would you rather spar with Elladan or Elrohir?"

Ricky's reply was a yell as he launched himself at Elrohir. It only took a few moments for Elrohir to pin Ricky.

"That was dishonorable," Elrohir said.

"Who da hell ca'es 'bout awna?" Ricky scoffed. "It's nevah done anybody any good." He struggled to get Elrohir off him.

"Is that what you truly believe?" asked Elladan.

Elrohir allowed Ricky to sit up. The Elf was surprised that the boy was able to leave a bruise on his brow.

"Da last time I saw someone doin' da 'awnarable' t'ing, he got stabbed wit' an icepick," Ricky said. Quietly he added, "It wasn't a fast way t' die."

Elrohir got to his feet and held his hand out to Ricky.

Ricky only looked at the hand before getting to his feet and straightening his clothes.

"You can trust us," said Glorfindel. "We mean you no harm."

Ricky huffed. "Da last time someone said dat, dis happened." He pulled his eye covering down on the left side to show the pale scar that just missed his eye by a hair's breadth. "I got moa if you wanna see. Ones fo' trustin', ones fo' stupidity, I even got on fo' tryin' t' be a good poyson." He put his eye covering back into place. "Dere's no awna where I'm from. If dere was, dere ain't no moa."

There was a commotion and the Elves turned in the direction of the front entrance.

"What's up?" asked Ricky.

The twins frowned at him.

Ricky sighed. "What's goin' on?"

"I do not know," said Elladan.

"We should see," said Elrohir.

The twins ran off to see what all the commotion was about.

"Master Ricky, we will continue our lesson," announced Glorfindel.

"Lesson?" asked Ricky. "Didn't realize you wuh takin' dis so seriously."

"These are dark times," Glorfindel told him. "It is wise to know how to defend yourself, whether it is with blade or bow. Let me see your true talent, Master Ricky. Do not attack in anger."

Ricky's mouth twitched. "Do you really want dat?"

Twenty minutes later, Ricky was laid out flat on his back.

Glorfindel stood over him and smiled. "You have much strength in your legs."

"Runnin' da tunnels," said Ricky.

Glorfindel held out his hand, but Ricky refused it again. "Perhaps we should begin another lesson."

"Anotha?" asked Ricky.

"A language lesson," Glorfindel clarified. "Lord Elrond is a better teacher, but I believe I can do well enough for now."

Ricky frowned. "Whadiya mean a language lesson?"

"I have a difficult time understanding your accent," said Glorfindel. "Common Tongue, or Westron, is not your native tongue."

"Whadiya tawkin' 'bout?" said Ricky. "My English is fine. A lot of us tawk like dis in New York. It's diffoirent in diffoirent boiroughs, but simila' enough."

Elladan hurried around the corner. " _Glorfindel, Arwen has brought a Hobbit here. Father is healing him now._ "

"You do rememba dat I can't undastand a woid yo' sayin'," said Ricky.

"And there are times we do not understand you," Glorfindel pointed out.

Ricky sighed. Both Elves were certain he rolled his eyes behind his eye covering.

" _Estel is coming with the other Hobbits,_ " Elladan went on. " _We are to take horses to them._ "

Glorfindel turned back to Ricky. "We will have to continue our lesson another time."

"Okay," said Ricky. "I'll find a way t' keep myself entatained."

Glorfindel and Elladan walked away.

* * *

Bilbo was sitting on a stone bench with his finished book in his hands. He looked up and saw the strangest looking boy he had ever seen. He wasn't sure it was a boy at first, not with that strange contraption on his face.

"Oh, good gracious!"

The boy turned to him. His eyes were hidden, but he could see apparently.

"I'm sorry, my boy. I didn't hear you coming."

"S'aight," said the boy. "I'm used to it."

Bilbo waved him over. "Come. Sit. I've been seeing many Elves during my stay here. I do not see other Big Folk often."

"Big Folk?" the boy said.

"Elves, Men, Dwarves even," said Bilbo. "Anyone taller than a Hobbit, in fact."

"So everybody else den," the boy sniped, but was a bit confused.

Bilbo could see a perplexed look on the boy's face. "Bilbo Baggins, at your service."

"Ricky Weiss." He looked at the book in Bilbo's hands. "Whatcha readin'?"

Bilbo held the book out.

Ricky looked at the title. "'Hea and Back Again: A Hobbit's Tale by Bilbo Baggins'. You wrote dis? Dat's amazin'."

"Would you like to read it?" Bilbo asked.

"I wouldn't mind," Ricky replied.

"Then perhaps you would like to read a chapter to me," said Bilbo.

Ricky frowned. "You awready know da book."

"Yes," said Bilbo. "But it would be a joy for someone to read to this old Hobbit."

"Okay." Ricky sat down and carefully opened the book. "'Consoinin' Hobbits.'"

Bilbo smiled. "Your accent is fascinating, Master Weiss. It will take me some time to understand it."

Ricky sighed angrily. "Glo'findel said I have t' loin how t' 'speak propoily'."

"Try," said Bilbo. "You will be surprised at what you can do."

Ricky gave a small nod. "Okay. 'Hobbits have been livin' - liv _ing_ , and _farming_ in da – _the - Four Farthings_ of the Shire _for_ many hundreds of years.'" Ricky's speech was slow and deliberate. A small smile came to his face when he heard he could say the words as they were meant to be said.

"See?" said Bilbo. "Keep going."

"'Quite content _to_ ignore and be ignored by the woild, _world_ , of the Big Folk. Middle Earth being, afta - _after_ – aw – aw -." Ricky shook his head in frustration.

"All," said Bilbo. "You can do it."

"Awww," Ricky tried.

"Look at my mouth," said Bilbo. "All."

"Aw – all," Ricky finally said. "'After all, full of strange creatures beyond count. Hobbits must seem of little importance. Being neither renowned as great wa -warriors nor counted among the very wise. In fact, it has been remarked by some, that Hobbits awnly – _only_ – passion is for food. A rather unfair observation as we have awso – _also_ – developed a keen interest in the brewing of ales and the smoking of pipeweed. But where our hearts truly lie is in peace and quiet and good tilled earth, for all Hobbits share a love of things that grow.'"

Bilbo was laughing. "I told you you could do it, Master Weiss, I told you."

"T'ank you," Ricky said quietly. " _Thank_ you."

"It will take some time, but I am certain you can get it," said Bilbo, giving Ricky a pat on the back.

Ricky flinched and stiffened.

"Master Weiss?" Bilbo asked.

"I don't like bein' touched," Ricky said quietly, tensing up.

"I'm sorry, Master Weiss. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable."

"You can caw me Ricky," he said. He shook his head.

"Like I said," Bilbo encouraged, "you'll get it."

Ricky nodded.

"Master Baggins," said an Elf.

The two of them looked up and saw it was Lindir. Neither of them heard him approach. Ricky jumped and reached for something at his hip, but stopped himself.

"Yes?"

"Lady Arwen has returned and she has brought your young cousin with her," said Lindir.

"Frodo? He's here?" Bilbo pushed himself off the bench. Ricky reached out to grab him if he fell, but made no move to touch him.

Lindir stepped forward and took Bilbo's arm. "He arrived with a wound from a Morgul blade. Lord Elrond is healing him now."

Bilbo was horrified. "Oh, no."

Lindir led Bilbo to the healing halls, leaving Ricky by the bench.

* * *

Aragorn and the other Hobbits arrived that night. The Hobbits had been taken to the guest chambers and were being fed, much to the delight of Merry and Pippin. Aragorn took the horses back to the stables along with Elladan and Elrohir.

" _A boy arrived with Gandalf?_ " Aragorn asked.

The twins had told them that Gandalf had been delayed and had arrived in Rivendell at dawn, but they had not said anything about the strange boy who arrived with him.

" _Yes. He is certainly odd._ "

" _And angry._ "

" _His speech is strange. It is almost like another language._ "

" _At first, we were unsure if he was speaking Westron._ "

" _I am sure I will meet the boy soon enough,_ " said Aragorn.

Above them, there was a noise in the loft.

"Is someone there?" Elladan called up.

There was more rustling in the loft and someone looked down at them, someone with a strange eye covering with clear glass.

"What are you doing up there, Master Weiss?" asked Elladan.

"I was sleepin'," replied Ricky tiredly.

"In the stables?" asked Elrohir. "Our father provided you with a room."

Ricky shook his head. "Couldn't sleep in it." He disappeared and they could hear straw shuffling.

" _Elladan, Elrohir, let me speak to the boy,_ " said Aragorn.

The twins stabled their horses and left.

Aragorn waited a few moments before climbing up the ladder to the loft. Some of the straw was piled up to make a small bed. The boy, Ricky, was curled up in a ball.

"Master Weiss," Aragorn called softly.

The boy jumped up with a small thin blade in his hand.

Aragorn put his hands up in surrender. "Peace, child. I only wish to speak to you."

"You nevah sleep eitha," grumbled Ricky. He folded up the blade and slipped it down his boot. "Who'a you and whadiya want?"

"You may call me Strider and I wanted to meet you," said Aragorn. "My brothers told me about how you traveled with Gandalf."

"Yo' brothas?" said Ricky.

"Elladan and Elrohir."

"Look nuthin' like you. And dere shouldn't have been much to tawk about."

"They did tell me you gave Elrohir a bruise."

"Dey'a twins. Had t' have a way t' tell them apart. And El'ohi' pissed me awf. He said I couldn't fight. Now Glo'findel wants t' give me propa lessons." Ricky rolled his eyes.

Aragorn understood what Elladan and Elrohir meant by the boy speaking another language. It was nasally, almost whiny, but also forceful. His words sounded clumsy and uneducated and from what Aragorn heard of Ricky's actions, he was arrogant and ignorant, childish in fact.

"Why did you come to sleep in the stables?" asked Aragorn.

"'Cause I couldn't sleep in da bed," Ricky replied.

"There are other, more comfortable places to sleep." Aragorn looked over the side of the loft. "Is it because of the horses? You wanted to see them?"

Ricky didn't answer.

"Do you like horses?" Aragorn pressed.

"I like animals," Ricky replied quietly. "Dey don't judge. Dey don't care if yo' rich or po'. Dey don't care way yo' from. Dey don't care if yo' diffoirent. Dey don't judge."

"Are you often judged?" Aragorn inquired.

"Every single day."

Aragorn was quiet for a minute. "I will leave you to sleep." He left the stables so Ricky could get some rest.


	2. Logic of a Child

**Updates for this story are going to be slow, but I had this chapter ready to go and I thought you would like to have it early since there wasn't much other than introducing Ricky in the first chapter. Now we're getting into movie territory. The rating will probably need to go up in the near future thanks to Ricky's mouth. Thank you to the two people who have decided to follow this story. I do not own _Lord of the Rings_ , but Ricky is my character. Review!**

* * *

Ricky quickly got into a routine. He would eat breakfast with Elrond and his family in the dining area where he ate the first day. After breakfast, Elladan and Elrohir would have him practice his archery. They would eat lunch and Ricky would find Bilbo to read to until it was tea time in the Hobbit's opinion. Ricky wouldn't eat, but would continue to read out loud, occasionally sipping at the tea Bilbo gave him. Dinner was afterwards and then Ricky would disappear for some time for himself. No one was sure where he went, but he was always back at the stables when Aragorn came looking for him.

On the third night, Aragorn asked, "Where do you disappear to after dinner?"

"Dere's a gap in da rocks up dere," Ricky said, pointing up to the secret passage into Rivendell. "Reminds me of da tunnels."

Ricky gave a frustrated sigh and shook his head.

"What is it?" asked Aragorn.

"Bilbo has been trying to get me to speak 'properly'. I just can't seem to do it."

"You did just now," Aragorn pointed out.

"Yeah, but I have to think about it."

Aragorn could hear Ricky was right. He was stressing the sounds he tended to drop. He still had his whiny tone, but he no longer sounded ignorant, only that Westron was his second language. He could pronounce some of his R's more when they were in the middle of a word without thinking about them, but the TH sounds he had to think about to say. He was improving quickly in Aragorn's opinion.

"What are you doing there?"

Ricky said nothing for a moment. "Glorfindel says I have a lot of strength in my legs. I've been usin' it."

Aragorn frowned. "How?"

"It's difficult to explain," said Ricky. He smirked. "Maybe it would be better if I show you."

Aragorn began to climb down the loft's ladder. From above him, he saw a dark form jump and twist from the loft. Ricky landed and rolled across the floor and sprang back onto his feet.

Ricky set the pace to their destination at a job, Aragorn's long strides easily keeping up with the boy. However, Ricky didn't stay on the path. He would jump and swing from tree branches that hung over the path and would hop up the low walls instead of taking the stairs.

When they reached the gap in the rocks, the edge of the valley, Ricky ran up to the stone face and took two steps straight up and leaped. His hands caught the lip of a ledge and he pulled himself up so he was sitting on it. There was a smile on his face.

Ricky looked down at Aragorn. "Dat's some of what I can do. I can do a lot more. Used to do dis every day, in da tunnels, in da city. I could put so much distance between me and whoevah was chasin' me. Off a dumpsta, up a fire escape, and across two, maybe three roofs before dey could get up da fire escape."

While Aragorn didn't understand exactly what Ricky was talking about, he could hear how proud the boy was with himself. This was something Ricky was good at, something he liked to do. "Do Elladan and Elrohir know you can do this?"

"Haven't told dem," Ricky replied. "Elrohi' would call it runnin' away."

"Elrohir spoke out of turn," said Aragorn. "If what you showed me was a small portion of your talent, there is a great chance you can use it to your advantage."

"I awready use it to my advantage," said Ricky, wrinkling his nose. "Kick out when you vault an' you can do some serious damage."

Aragorn gave a smile. "Then show my brothers what you are able to do with 'running away.'"

Ricky smirked. "I t'ink I can do dat."

* * *

Bilbo's cousin woke the next morning, much to everyone's delight. The twins also learned what Ricky could do when he put his mind to it and wanted to prove someone wrong. Elves would have no trouble keeping up with Ricky, but the average Man would have trouble against him. Elrohir apologized for saying Ricky only knew how to run away.

Gandalf and Elrond were in Elrond's library, watching Frodo and Sam interact below them on the terrace. What they didn't know was that they had an eavesdropper. Ricky had decided to take a shortcut to find Aragorn and tell him what happened during morning training.

"His strength returns," said Elrond.

"That wound will never fully heal," Gandalf added. "He will carry it for the rest of his life."

"And yet to have come so far still carrying the Ring, the Hobbit has shown extraordinary resilience to its evil." Elrond walked over to a small table and poured himself a drink.

"It is a burden that he should never have had to bear," said Gandalf. "We can ask no more of Frodo."

"Gandalf, the enemy is moving. Sauron's forces are massing in the East. His Eye is fixed on Rivendell. And Saruman, you tell me, has betrayed us. Our list of allies grows thin."

"His treachery runs deeper than you know." Gandalf walked closer to Elrond. "A foul craft; Saruman has crossed orcs with goblin men. He's breeding an army in the caverns of Isengard, an army that can move in sunlight and cover great distance at speed. Saruman is coming for the Ring."

"This evil cannot be concealed by the power of the Elves," said Elrond. "We do not have the strength to battle both Mordor and Isengard."

There was silence.

"Gandalf, the Ring cannot stay here."

Gandalf looked out over the balcony.

"This peril belongs to all Middle Earth," said Elrond. "They must decide now how to end it. The time of the Elves is over. My people are leaving these shores. Who will you look to when we've gone? The Dwarves? The hide in their mountains seeking riches. They care nothing for the troubles of others."

"It is in Men that we must place our hope," said Gandalf.

"Men?" Elrond turned away and wandered his library. "Men are weak. The race of Men is failing. The blood of Numenor is all but spent. Its pride and dignity forgotten. It is because of Men the Ring survives. I was there, Gandalf. I was there three thousand years ago. When Isildur took the Ring, I was there the day the strength of Men failed. I led Isildur into the heart of Mount Doom, where the Ring was forged, the one place it could be destroyed. It should have ended that day, but evil was allowed to endure. Isildur kept the Ring. The line of kings is broken. There's no strength left in the world of Men. They're scattered, divided, leaderless."

"There is one who could unite them," said Gandalf. "One who could reclaim the throne of Gondor."

"He turned from that path a long time ago," said Elrond. "He has chosen exile."

Several Elves were startled when the strange visitor of Rivendell stormed out wearing the clothes he arrived in. His cheeks were flushed and he was muttering angrily under his breath, his accent so thick it was impossible to make out what he was saying. He paid no attention to the travelers who arrived in Rivendell a few minutes ago.

* * *

When Ricky did not return for the feast, Elrond checked his room. He found all the clothes that were given to Ricky neatly folded on the bed and the boots sitting next to the foot of the bed. His pack was missing and the clothes he wore when he arrived were gone.

Knowing there was a chance he was out in the stables, Elrond made his way there. The horses were slightly agitated. Elrond placed his hand on one's nose and soothed it.

Above them, there was a thump in the loft.

Elrond quietly climbed the ladder. He could smell alcohol before he reached the top. Ricky was leaning against the wall with his feet out in front of him, his pack beside him, and a bottle of strong Elven wine in one hand. It was clear he was drunk.

Elrond carefully pried the bottle away from Ricky. It was only half full. Ricky was young and small and a Man. The wine would have affected him more strongly.

Ricky moaned and grabbed for the bottle. "Gimme."

"No," Elrond said gently. "You had enough. Elvish wine is strong for Men."

"Whadiya ca'e?" Ricky snatched the bottle back and took a long swig. Perhaps he wasn't as deep in the bottle as Elrond first thought, but he was getting deeper. "Elves leavin'. Don' maddah t'you."

Elrond blinked.

Ricky looked at him blearily. "Hoid you 'n' Gandawf tawkin'. 'Men'r weak.'" He snorted. He reached up and pulled his eye covering off so it hung around his neck with the other covering.

It took a moment for Elrond to understand what Ricky was saying. "You are young and know nothing of the world."

"Bullshit."

Oddly, that word was not slurred at all. Elrond saw a flame of anger in Ricky's green eyes. The boy glared at the Elf lord.

"Sick 'n' tired'v people sayin' I know nut'in' 'cause imma kid. Sick 'n' tired'v naht undastandin'. Sick 'n' tired'v livin' like dis." Ricky rested his head back on the wall.

Elrond could see there were tears in his eyes. Ricky looked so old at that moment.

"Why didn't you do nut'in'? Why didn't you stahp Isildu'?"

"I brought him to Mount Doom," Elrond said. "He needed to cast the Ring into the fire."

Ricky's eyes looked in Elrond's direction. "I know some who'd'v done mo'. Ya could've pushed him."

Elrond was horrified at the thought of him pushing Isildur into the fires of Mount Doom.

Ricky's mouth twitched up in a watery smile. "You loved 'im," he said softly. "'S'why you didn't."

"I never thought to do such a heinous act," Elrond told him bitterly.

"You loved 'im," Ricky said again. "Dat's somethin' I don't rememba." Ricky closed his eyes and his head slumped. "Dat's somethin' I wish I had."

Elrond took the bottle from Ricky and let him sleep where he lounged. He would not envy the headache the boy would wake with in the morning.

* * *

The horses were not very pleased at the sound of retching outside of the stable in the morning.

Ricky braced himself against the side of the building, all the farther he had gotten after he fell out of the loft. "Fuck," he muttered. He brought the back of his hand to his mouth. "Dat was a dumb idea."

He threw up again. "Dammit! Damn goggles." He removed the goggles from around his neck. They would need a good washing out before he even put them around his neck.

After cleaning himself up to the best of his ability, Ricky wandered over to the kitchens. Apparently Elrond had told some of the other Elves that Ricky would wake up with a hangover and they gave him a special concoction to help with the pains. Ricky also got himself a cup of water to drink.

He started walking around Rivendell, trying to think of anything but the hangover. He managed to climb onto the roofs of several buildings and make his way across them. He hated that the Elves like domed roofs because it made everything much harder to navigate.

"Strangers from distant lands, friends of old," Ricky heard Elrond say. He turned in the direction of the voice and walked across the roof. Thankfully, this roof was flat.

Ricky got low so they wouldn't notice him. There was a group of Men, Elves, and Dwarves, along with Gandalf, Strider, and the little Hobbit that had been hurt, Frodo, if Ricky remembered right. Elrond stood under the shade of a large tree while the others sat in a semi-circle under the shade of other trees and the building.

"You have been summoned here to answer the threat of Mordor," continued Elrond.

Ricky checked that he wasn't casting a shadow. He was confident he was high enough that someone would have to intentionally look up to spot him.

"Middle Earth stands upon the brink of destruction. None can escape it. You will unite or you will fall. Each race is bound to this fate, this one doom."

Ricky's nose scrunched in annoyance. The Elves were leaving. Why should they bother with this?

Elrond turned to the Hobbit. "Bring forth the Ring, Frodo."

Frodo stood up and walked to the plinth. He placed something small on it.

"So it is true," said a man with light brown hair. He had one hand to his mouth.

Frodo returned to his seat and closed his eyes.

Several of the group eyed it suspiciously.

" _I can give you your heart's desire,_ " a soft whisper said in Ricky's mind. " _Claim my power as your own and you will want for nothing. I will give you everything you've dreamt of._ "

Ricky set his mouth in a hard line. "Fuck off," he whispered, staring at the small gold ring on the plinth. He casually sipped at his water.

The man with the light brown hair got to his feet. Ricky took a real good look at him, but it was hard to see him from behind. His clothes were very clean and looked expensive for the world Ricky was now in. Ricky figured he was an ambassador of sorts.

"In a dream I saw the Eastern sky grow dark. In the West a pale light lingered. A voice was crying, 'Your doom is near at hand.'" He reached out to touch the Ring. "Isildur's Bane."

Elrond jumped to his feet. "Boromir!"

The sky darkened as Gandalf began to speak.

"Ash nazg durbatulûk, ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg thrakatulûk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul."

Ricky ducked and covered his ears, his water spilling everywhere. "What da fuck?" he breathed in terror.

Ricky saw he hadn't been the only one to be affected by whatever Gandalf said. A few had cried out and the man, Boromir, was back at his chair. A few of the Elves, including Elrond, looked like they had migraines. Gandalf was on his feet.

The sky cleared and Boromir sat back down.

Elrond turned to Gandalf in horror and anger. "Never before has anyone uttered words of that tongue here in Imladris."

"I do not ask your pardon, Master Elrond, for the Black Speech of Mordor may yet be heard in every corner of the West." Gandalf looked at everyone. "The Ring is altogether evil." He sat down.

"It is a gift!" Boromir stood up. "A gift to the foes of Mordor. Why not use this Ring?"

Ricky rolled his eyes.

Boromir walked around addressing everyone. "Long has my father, the Steward of Gondor, kept the forces of Mordor at bay. By the blood of our people are your lands kept safe. Give Gondor the weapon of the enemy; let us use it against him."

"You cannot wield it," said Strider. "None of us can. The One Ring answers to Sauron alone. It has no other master."

Boromir turned to Strider. "And what would a ranger know of this matter?" he asked scathingly.

Ricky had the sudden urge to throw his water cup at Boromir's head.

It was a blonde Elf that stood. "This is no mere ranger. He is Aragorn, son of Arathorn. You owe him your allegiance."

Boromir stared at Strider in disbelief. "Aragorn! This . . . is Isildur's heir."

"And heir to the throne of Gondor," the Elf finished.

"Havo dad, Legolas," Strider, Aragorn, placated.

Boromir turned to the Elf. "Gondor has no king." He walked back to his seat and stared at Aragorn disdainfully. "Gondor needs no king."

"Aragorn is right," said Gandalf. "We cannot use it."

Elrond stood up. "You have only one choice. The Ring must be destroyed."

The Dwarf with auburn hair and beard spoke up. "Then what are we waiting for?" He stood up and grabbed his axe. He swung it down on the Ring. The axe shattered and the Dwarf was knocked back. The Ring was unscathed.

"Holy shit," muttered Ricky.

"The Ring cannot be destroyed, Gimli, son of Glóin, by any craft that we here possess," said Elrond. "The Ring was made in the fires of Mount Doom. Only there can it be unmade. It must be taken deep into Mordor and cast back into the fiery chasm from whence it came. One of you must do this."

No one spoke.

"One does not simply walk into Mordor," Boromir said. "Its Black Gates are guarded by more than just orcs. There is evil there that does not sleep and the Great Eye is ever watchful. Tis a barren wasteland, riddled with fire and ash and dust. The very air you breathe is poisonous fume. Not with ten thousand men could you do this."

Ricky knew when it came to staying out of sight, bigger was not better. Ten thousand men wouldn't do a thing.

Boromir shook his head. "It is folly."

The Elf with blonde hair who had spoken before jumped to his feet. "Have you heard nothing Lord Elrond has said? The Ring must be destroyed."

"And I suppose you think you're the one to do it," Gimli sneered at the Elf.

"And if we fail, what then?" asked Boromir, getting to his feet. "What happens when Sauron takes back what is his?"

Gimli jumped up. "I will be dead before I see the Ring in the hands of an Elf!"

It was only seconds before everyone was jumping to their feet and arguing.

"Never trust an Elf!" Ricky heard Gimli yell from his place on the roof.

Gandalf shook his head and got to his feet to try to join the argument. "Do you not understand that while we bicker amongst ourselves, Sauron's power grows?" he yelled. "None can escape it! You'll all be destroyed!"

"Oh, God," Ricky said exasperatedly. He drained the rest of his water and got to his feet.

A loud, shrill whistle echoed and a cup was bounced off of Gimli's helmet. "Hey! Whadiya doin'?" Ricky yelled.

They all looked up at Ricky.

"This is a secret council," Elrond reprimanded.

"Wo'k on yo' security," Ricky snapped back, assessing what was below him.

There was a ruined tower in front of him about halfway to the ground. He took a few steps back and jumped to the tower with a running start. He balanced himself on his feet for a second and then jumped backwards about a foot. His hands caught the tower where he originally landed and he let himself slide down the rest of the way.

"I am surprised you are awake and lucid, Master Weiss," Elrond commented.

"I'm surprised, too," Ricky said, getting up on the patio.

"Perhaps you can offer us a solution, Master Weiss," said Gandalf, extending his hand in Ricky's direction.

Ricky was surprised. "Me?"

"Him?" asked Boromir. "He's a child!"

"Yes," replied Gandalf, ignoring Boromir's remark. "You are not of this world, Master Weiss. You may have some insight of how to handle situations like this."

Ricky scoffed. "You serious?"

Gandalf gave a small nod and grunt.

Ricky sighed. "Elves wanna destroy the Ring, the Dwarves don't want dem to take it, and da humans are wussin' out 'cause the problem seems too big fo' dem. Might as well find some shovels 'cause we're screwed six ways from Sunday at dis rate."

"Do you truly believe this is hopeless?" asked the blonde Elf.

Ricky turned to him. "Yo' standin' hea bitchin' about what should and shouldn't be done wit' da Ring, but I haven't hoid one of you nut up and voluntea."

"You make it sound like a simple decision, laddie," said the Dwarf.

Ricky barked a humorless laugh. "Dude, wuh dead eitha way."

Frodo jumped up. "I will take the Ring to Mordor," he said in a strong voice.

Everyone turned to him.

Quietly he added, "Though I don't know the way."

Gandalf moved to stand beside Frodo. "I will help you bear this burden, Frodo Baggins, as long as it is yours to bear."

Aragorn stood up. "If by my life or death I can protect you, I will." He walked up to Frodo and knelt before him. "You have my sword." He moved to stand behind Frodo with Gandalf.

"And you have my bow," said the blonde Elf, stepping to Frodo.

"And my axe," Gimli added.

Boromir walked over to Frodo. "You carry the fates of us all, little one. If this is indeed the will of the council, then Gondor will see it done."

"Here!" One of Frodo's Hobbit friends popped out of the bushes. "Mr. Frodo's not going anywhere without me."

"No, indeed," said Elrond. "It is hardly possible to separate you, even when he is summoned to a secret council and you are not."

The other two Hobbits ran out from behind some columns.

"Oi! We're coming too!"

Elrond turned to the Hobbits joining their companions, an astounded look on his face.

"You'd have to send us home tied up in a sack to stop us."

"Anyway, you need people of intelligence on this sort of mission, quest, thing," said the other.

"Well, that rules you out, Pip."

They heard a snort and turned to Ricky.

"If you guys are goin', I betta come along," he said. "Somebody's gotta keep you from killin' each otha."

Elrond looked at them thoughtfully. "Ten companions. So be it. You shall be the Fellowship of the Ring."

"Great," chirped one Hobbit. "Where are we going?"

Ricky face-palmed, forgetting about how bad his head still hurt from his hangover.

* * *

 **So the Fellowship has been created. Tell me what you think about Ricky's character and his interactions with the characters so far. I was hoping for some feedback from last chapter, but I had nothing. I guess I have to ask for reviews if I want feedback from you guys. So leave a comment in that box below and let me know what you think of Ricky so far.**


	3. Scars of the Soul

**Hello again. Thank you all so much for the support with this story. I love the feed back and how much you guys are waiting to see what's going to happen with Ricky. I do want to confess something: I had planned to do a major twist with this story and now I'm having second thoughts. You guys have said that you like Ricky so much so far and it seems like if I do what I plan on doing that it's going to ruin the story. Part of me wants to keep it in, but part of me feels bad for doing it to you guys. I guess it's going to boil down to what you think of Ricky in these chapters leading up to _The Two Towers_ portion of the story. So leave a comment; let me know what you think about Ricky's character developing at this time. I might have to restructure the later chapters depending on what you tell me.**

* * *

It was decided they were going to spend two weeks in Rivendell, taking time for them to recover from their journeys and teach the Hobbits a few basic fighting techniques.

Ricky spent most of his time with Elladan and Elrohir. They started a lesson where if he pronounced a word "incorrectly," one of them would give him a soft smack on the head. Ricky was beginning to believe they had different definitions of the word "soft," but that could have been Elrohir's revenge after he punched him the first day they met.

"Ow, dammit!" Ricky swore, rubbing the back of his head. He was hit again. "Son of a bitch, Elrohir! Stop hitting me!"

"Stop cursing and I will stop," Elrohir said calmly.

"I didn't even start this," Ricky said angrily.

Elrohir raised the arrow he was using to "softly" smack Ricky again.

"Elrohir, so help me, you hit me with that arrow again, I will nut you," said Ricky. "I don't care if it's honorable or not, I will do it."

"Elrohir, stop harassing Ricky," said Elladan. "We are to be conducting an archery lesson."

"And for that, I need to be able to see straight," said Ricky.

Ricky drew back his bow.

Elladan came up behind Ricky and gently corrected his stance. "You need to remember to keep your elbow up. Draw all the way back to your cheek."

"You make it sound easy," muttered Ricky, flinching subtly at Elladan's touch.

"Focus," Elladan reminded.

"Don't touch me," Ricky muttered irritably.

Elladan moved away and allowed Ricky to shoot.

Ricky released and the arrow made the target. He let out a disappointed sigh for not getting closer to the bullseye.

"That was a good shot," said Elladan. "You made the target. You need to relax when you release."

"Easier said than done," said Ricky.

"Master Weiss."

Ricky turned to see Elrond standing at the edge of the training grounds.

"Go," said Elrohir. "Ada wishes to speak to you."

Ricky put his bow down and went to speak to Elrond.

"Walk with me, young one," said Elrond.

Ricky walked beside Elrond as he led him into the library.

Elrond noticed Ricky was silent and tense. "You do not need to feel threatened. You are not in trouble."

"Habit," Ricky explained.

"It is not the only habit I have noticed," said Elrond. "How long have you been finding yourself at the bottom of bottles?"

Ricky was quiet. "For a while now."

"When did it start?" asked Elrond.

"I don't wanna tawk about dis!" snapped Ricky.

"It is something that must be addressed," Elrond said firmly. He motioned to a chair for Ricky to sit in.

Ricky let out a heavy sigh and sat down.

Elrond took a seat across from him. "When did the drinking begin?"

"A couple years ago," Ricky admitted quietly.

"Why?"

"Oh, God, really?" asked Ricky.

Elrond simply kept his gaze on Ricky.

Ricky's head fell into his hands. "You really don't wanna know."

"Ricky."

"You don't." Ricky lifted his head and his mouth was twisted in anger. "You don't. No one should know."

"Let us help you," said Elrond.

"Oh, tawkin's supposed t' help? It doesn't. It nevah does. It just makes me rememba everythin' and how messed up I am!" Ricky breathed heavily and calmed down. "You don't cut open sca's just t' rememba da pain."

Ricky got up and walked away.

"Ricky," Elrond called after him. "Ricky!"

Ricky picked up the pace and ran out the building.

Gimli noticed the boy sprint passed him. "Lad, watch where you're going!" He shook his head and kept on walking. If the lad was going to be so fiery, it would be dangerous to have him on the quest.

The lad was very strange. He spoke with a strange tongue, dressed in strange clothes, and had strange ideas.

Legolas was having similar thoughts. He watched Ricky run up the incline that led to the edge of Rivendell. With a quick leap, Ricky was up in a tree and jumping and swinging from branch to branch. It was nowhere near as graceful as an Elf, but it certainly was more graceful than the typical Man. The child had potential.

Legolas decided to find Ricky an hour later when he didn't come back. What he found was astounding. Ricky had just jumped from quite a height and tucked into a ball. He hit the ground feet first and rolled. He sprang back to his feet and kept running. He took a step up a tree trunk and flipped around, twisting so he could keep running in the opposite direction. He stopped when he caught sight of Legolas.

"What do you want?" Ricky demanded.

"I wish to know my companion," Legolas answered. "We will be traveling together, after all."

"Here's what you need to know: I'm not from around here, I don't play nice, and I'm a survivor. Honestly, I don't know why I signed up for this."

"Then why are you here?" asked Legolas.

"Gandalf got me away from Saruman," Ricky replied.

"And you feel as if you owe him," Legolas said.

Ricky's face twisted. "And I hate owing anybody."

"There is a chance you will not return from this journey. Why would you risk your life? You are very young, even in the eyes of Men."

Ricky looked away. "'In the end, it is not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years.'"

Legolas was surprised at the wise words from the strange boy. They were not his own words, but someone else's.

Ricky turned back to him. "Just because I'm a street kid, doesn't mean I don't read."

Legolas saw this as a way to learn more about Ricky. "You like to read?"

Ricky nodded. "Oh, yes. If I wasn't out looking for food or money, I was reading. Bilbo was having me read out of his book for pronunciation. You guys can't deal with a New Yorker. And honestly, I have a hard time dealing with you."

"How so?" asked Legolas.

"You guys are so proper and uptight." To make a point, he added, "Speakin' propahly an' crap makes ya sound like one of dose yuppies who t'ink dey know everythin' an' don't give a crap 'bout da people beneath dem unless it's puttin' on a front t'make dem look like saints. See what I mean? You probably only caught half of that."

"I understood most of it, but I believe I will need you to clarify what a 'yuppie' is."

Ricky snorted. "I don't think you want to know. It's more than a little insulting."

Both were quiet. Ricky shifted, awkward with the silence. "Was there another reason you're here?"

Legolas was looking Ricky up and down. "I am curious where you learned how to jump like you did. Perhaps I can teach you more."

"Self-taught," Ricky replied. "You could teach me more?"

Legolas gave a nod. "Elladan and Elrohir tell me you are decent with a bow."

Ricky snorted. "I can hit a target if that's what you mean."

"You need to learn how to use a sword," Legolas also added. "Aragorn can teach you as we travel."

Ricky turned away. "I doubt I'll be able to use one."

"From what I have heard, you are a quick learner," said Legolas. "The Hobbits will need to learn as well. The Gentle Folk of the West know nothing of fighting. If they are able to learn, so will you."

Ricky turned back to Legolas. The corner of his mouth twitched. "Glad somebody thinks I can do somethin' right."

* * *

Later that evening, Ricky was confronted by Lord Elrond again. He didn't press Ricky's drinking problem, but something else that he was curious about.

"Why do you not wear the clothes we gave you, Master Weiss?"

The question caught Ricky off-guard. "I didn't want you worryin' about clothin' me along with feedin' me."

Elrond looked down at Ricky with a hurt expression in his eyes. "Do you truly see yourself as such a burden on us?"

"A street kid is a burden on everybody," Ricky said. "They ain't yo' blood, they have nothin' to contribute to society. They're just freeloaders. And I don't want that." Ricky looked away, his face twisted up with anger, sorrow, and disgust.

"Ricky." Elrond kept his voice soft, coaxing the hurt animal to let him help him. "We give these things to you freely, not out of obligation that we must help you. Your world is very different from ours. Elves will not turn away someone in need, especially a child. And you will need new clothes for the quest. Your shoes will not last you to the Misty Mountains."

Ricky chuckled at that, glancing down at the duct tape that was holding them together. "I guess I could use some new shoes."

Elrond smiled.

* * *

When most were asleep, Ricky was still awake taking inventory of what he owned. His clothes were laid out on the floor. He was currently wearing dark leggings and a brown tunic belted around his waist. His old sweatshirt and jeans were not in the best of shape and his socks were more holes than fabric. He already had his sneakers by the door to be taken out with the trash. His underclothes were still on the floor to be decided. He had a pair of tight, black pants and matching shirt with a logo of two arches overlapping. Ricky remembered all the trouble he had to steal these clothes. Under Armour Cold Gear was some of the best out there and it had served Ricky very well so far and with winter coming, he wasn't giving it up. He folded them and placed them with his pack. His other clothes were too small to comfortably move in for Ricky's liking. He had gone through enough of a growth spurt to make a difference. The only reason his Cold Gear and his everyday clothes still fit him was because he had got them a size or two larger than what he needed at the time.

Ricky moved on to the other items in his pack. There were three rolls of duct tape, a ball of twine, a claw hammer, a manual LED flashlight, and a foldable multi-tool that had several screwdriver heads, mini socket wrench set, bottle opener, nail clippers, small knife, and more. He also had a homemade medical kit that he put together when he had the money to get supplies. He kept everything in a small plastic container. It held a bottle of aspirin, a few packets of DayQuil tablets, a bottle of tea tree oil, antiseptic wipes, gauze, cotton balls, cotton swabs, ACE bandages, and plenty of adhesive bandages. All of it was individually wrapped in sandwich bags to keep the container organized. In a separate plastic bag was an emergency suture kit he managed to pick up from an outdoors store. Ricky had used one in the past after he cut his leg after falling into a dumpster. These were things he wasn't leaving behind.

In his pocket, Ricky carried an Altoids mint tin. The lid was held in place with two strong rubber bands, the kind that came on bunches of produce. It held a much smaller version of his medical kit: a bunch of bandages, antiseptic wipes, and a couple aspirin and DayQuil. There were also a couple of needles, safety pins, a single bobbin of black thread, a razor blade from a disposable razor, a mini black Sharpie, a lighter, some duct tape, string, a couple dollars, and his library card. The money and the library card wouldn't help him much, but he put them back into the tin once he took inventory of it.

Ricky continued going through his bag. He found his hygiene kit with a small mirror, soap, toothbrush, small tube of toothpaste, and floss. He found a couple packs of stale crackers, his water bottle, and a sturdy hunting knife that had been a real pain to steal, but well worth it. His straight razor was with his boots. He usually kept it somewhere on his legs as a surprise weapon.

Ricky packed up everything and put it in his bag. It seemed better days as well and the duct tape would only hold for so long and soon the bag would be completely made out of duct tape. He put the bag on the floor and sat on the bed. He fiddled with a fingerless glove. He would also be keeping his gloves, both pairs of goggles, his bandana, and knit hat.

There was another thing bothering Ricky: how he was going to fight. He wouldn't admit it out loud, but Elrohir was right when he said that Ricky ran away a lot. He really did know how to fight. However, the problem was that Ricky was worried that someone would get seriously hurt if he actually fought them.

It was an Asian man who had taught Ricky. He was five years old when he met the homeless man and for two years he lived with him, sleeping in the park, in old access tunnels, anywhere they could safely be. The Asian man taught Ricky how to fight, how to take down people much larger than himself. It was also the time when Ricky started learning parkour. Ricky needed to show people here that he could fight and take care of himself.

He didn't know how quickly the time would come to prove himself.

* * *

Ricky was awake at the crack of dawn and apparently wasn't the only one. After getting dressed, he made his way down to the kitchens for a bite to eat.

"Master Weiss."

Ricky stopped and was surprised to see Legolas. "Hey."

"I wish to test your skills," Legolas told him.

Ricky blinked. "I thought everyone else already told you what my skills are."

"But I have yet to truly see your skills," he responded.

Ricky twitched his nose. "Fine. Can I eat first?"

"I would not stop a child from having a proper meal if I can help it," Legolas replied. "You will fade away if you become any thinner."

"Shaddup," muttered Ricky.

Ricky ate a roll and went out to the training grounds where Legolas was waiting for him. With him were Glorfindel, Elladan, and Elrohir.

"What's this?" Ricky asked.

Glorfindel smiled. "Legolas tells us you have a special skill."

"You didn't tell us," said the twins.

"None of you asked," Ricky pointed out. "I don't consider it a special skill. And Elrohir called it running away."

Elladan and Elrohir frowned.

Legolas turned to Ricky. "Follow me."

Legolas took quick strides and jumped over a small wall and kept walking.

Ricky blinked. Was Legolas doing what he thought he was doing? With a smirk, Ricky chased after Legolas. As soon as Legolas knew Ricky was following him, he sped up. Their game of follow the leader took them around the House of Elrond and though Rivendell. Legolas never went faster than Ricky could keep up. While Legolas easily cleared his obstacles, Ricky had to work a little more for them. He rolled over low walls instead of jumping off them and used precision leaps to avoid some obstacles altogether. Behind them, Glorfindel and the twins followed, surprised Ricky could move like this.

After making their way back to the training grounds, Legolas stopped and waited for Ricky. Ricky jumped off a wall with a front tuck and landed in front of Legolas. The Elves following them caught up.

"Impressive," said Glorfindel. "Not the most graceful of races, but impressive for a child of Man."

"I will admit I was wrong, Master Weiss," Elrohir said. "I apologize for my comments of calling you a coward."

Ricky was still trying to catch his breath. "Not the first time. Won't be the last."

They walked back to the kitchens to get Ricky some water and something else to eat. Ricky didn't want to eat anything else, but the Elves insisted, saying he was far too thin to be healthy. Ricky rolled his eyes and ate the apple they told him to eat.

After the second breakfast as the Hobbits called it, Ricky found his way back to the training grounds. The Dwarves were now there and everyone was giving Gimli some extra sparring practice.

One of the Dwarves looked up and saw Ricky has he passed by. "Lad, join us! Let's see if you can fight."

"I just got done playing follow the leader with Legolas," Ricky called back.

"Playing games with an Elf won't make a warrior," the Dwarf retorted. "Get down here and spar!"

Ricky walked onto the training field.

"Better grab a weapon, laddie," said Gimli, taking his stance.

Ricky gave Gimli an accessing look. "Don't worry about me. Worry about yourself."

There were times when Ricky hadn't the chance to arm himself. Those were the times when things were the most dangerous. It was those times when Ricky remembered the Asian.

"C'mon, ginger," Ricky taunted with a smirk.

Gimli lifted his axe. Ricky charged forward, but stopped as Gimli made his move. Ricky found an opening and punched Gimli in the nose.

Gimli let out a cry and stepped back.

Ricky grinned.

Gimli came at Ricky again with his axe. Ricky dodged again, but Gimli put his axe down and switched to hand to hand. Gimli was slower than Ricky, but he had more training. He managed to strike Ricky. Ricky went down and rolled to his knees.

"You all right, laddie?" Gimli asked.

Ricky touched his mouth where Gimli hit him. There was no blood. Ricky sprang up with a yell. The boy grabbed the Dwarf's arm and threw him to the side. Gimli stumbled. How did the boy have that much strength? Ricky crouched and spun around, his foot catching Gimli's leg and tripping him.

Gimli turned over and look at Ricky. He laughed. "You have some fire in ye, lad. Come." Gimli got back to his feet, eager to continue.

Ricky wasn't sure if he should keep going.

He remembered what he learned. He only knew his teacher for a short time when he was little, but Ricky had learned. There was a rule on the streets; adapt or die. Ricky adapted. He survived. He could fight. He may not be able to fight like his teacher, but he turned what he learned into his own.

Gimli let out a yell and came at him again.

Ricky ducked, putting his arm up. He launched himself off one foot and used a forearm strike to Gimli's stomach. Gimli was wearing armor and it did more damage to Ricky's arm than to Gimli's stomach. The force was enough to have Gimli stagger back a little. Ricky kept moving forward and jumped into the air. He kicked Gimli in the shoulder. Gimli was knocked off balance.

Ricky took a few steps back and held his injured arm. It didn't feel broken, but it was certainly bruised.

"Is that all you got, lad?" Gimli challenged.

The two came at each other again and Ricky was pulled into a wrestling match a boy his size wouldn't be able to win. Gimli was stronger and heavier than Ricky and easily brought him to his knees. Ricky's arm was being twisted painfully. Gimli wasn't about to break the boy's arm, but the hold was painful.

Ricky needed to get out of that hold. His free hand balled into a fist and he thrusted it up between Gimli's legs. Gimli let out a yell and released Ricky, doubling over and holding himself.

Ricky got to his feet, kicked Gimli in the femur, and punched him in the face. However, he caught Gimli's helmet in the process. Gimli fell onto his back. Ricky moved back, his stance defensive.

Gimli sat up and looked up at Ricky. "I yield."

Ricky held his defensive stance, backing up as the other Dwarves helped Gimli to his feet.

One of the Dwarves pointed out in Khuzdul that he could have taken Ricky. Gimli then pointed out the state of Ricky's hand. The boy's knuckles were bleeding and Gimli knew his arm was bruised.

Gimli turned to Ricky. "You have a fire in ye, laddie," he said again.

Ricky turned and left the training grounds, holding his bruised arm.

His quick walk took him to one of the gardens where he found a bench and sat down.

"Master Weiss."

Ricky looked up. Aragorn was standing down the path.

"Are you well?" Aragorn asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," replied Ricky.

Aragorn approached him. "You are hurt." He knelt before him. "Let me."

Ricky pulled back, holding his arm. Aragorn waited for Ricky to relax. It was several moments before Ricky pushed up his sleeve.

Aragorn prodded at his arm. "Bruised, but not broken." He moved to Ricky's hand, checking the bones with gentle hands, not caring that he was getting blood on him. "Nothing broken, only scraped."

Ricky let his hand linger in Aragorn's loose grip. He looked at their hands and blinked.

Aragorn noticed Ricky wasn't pulling away and let his hands cradle Ricky's. He carefully rubbed Ricky's fingers. He ran his thumb over the back of Ricky's hand.

"You're not hurting me," Ricky whispered.

Aragorn lifted his grey eyes to Ricky's face. A smile tugged at Ricky's thin lips.

"I knew you could smile," Aragorn said quietly.

The little upturn of his lips disappeared. He pulled his hand away and quickly left.

Aragorn slowly got to his feet.

"It is like caring for an injured animal."

Aragorn turned to Legolas. "We will do what we can for him."

Legolas had witnessed the exchange between Aragorn and the boy. "Do you believe he is fit for the journey?"

"He is," replied Aragorn. "Whatever has happened to him, he is not afraid to fight. However, he is afraid to trust."

"I agree with you; he is not afraid to fight. I do worry for him. He is a child. He cannot be more than twenty winters."

"Younger than that," said Aragorn. "You were never good at telling the ages of Men. No more than seventeen winters. His eye coverings and size make it difficult to tell his true age, but he is very young."

"Someone so young should not be burdened so," Legolas said. "What happens to a child to cause so much pain?"

"I do not know," said Aragorn. "But we are sure to learn on our journey."

* * *

Ricky went to his room and cleaned the scrapes with tea tree oil and wrapped them. He decided to take walk around Rivendell, since they would be leaving soon and Ricky was sure not to see it again.

He found himself in a gallery. There was a fresco on the wall of a battle. A glowing figure was on the ground, holding a broken sword to defend himself against a shadow. One the hand of the shadow was a gold ring. Ricky recognized it as the Ring, the one at the Council.

He turned around to the statue. It was a man sitting on a rock with a shield across his lap. On the shield was a broken sword on display. Ricky looked over his shoulder at the fresco and saw the sword was the same sword in front of him.

"Do you know what the image depicts?"

Ricky whipped around to see Boromir standing a little ways off.

"Of course you would not," scoffed Boromir. "If what Gandalf says is true, you are not from our world. You have no place among us. You are a child! You have no business on this quest."

Ricky narrowed his eyes, but figured Boromir couldn't see them. "Still pissed Gandalf asked my opinion instead of yours? I don't give a shit what you think, Pretty Boy. You have your own agenda."

Boromir glared. "How dare you speak to me like that? I am the son of the Steward of Gondor!"

"Yeah, so?"

Boromir's eyes widened.

"Do you think I really care who's a king, who's a lord, and who's a steward?" Ricky asked. "Titles are just words to me if you don't have the track record to back it up. People born with a silver spoon in their mouths have no idea what it is to work."

That made Boromir very angry. "I worked hard for my people. I serve Gondor. I protect her and her people. That is why I am here, to save her."

"And what have you sacrificed?" spat Ricky. "I'd like to hear that."

Boromir's face turned red. "And what would you know about sacrifice?"

"Mo' dan you t'ink," Ricky snapped. With that, he walked around the statue and leapt off the level and down to the stone ground floor below. He tucked and rolled and ran off.

Ricky's destination was the stables. He climbed up into the loft. He punched a beam out of frustration. "Shit!" he growled angrily.

There was a snort from a horse below.

"Shaddup!" he snapped down to the horse.

Ricky flopped down in a pile of hay.

* * *

Ricky had taken up residence in a maintenance closet in the tunnels for the week. He would have to move out before the next time the city workers came to do work. Ricky packed up his bag and left the closet. The tunnels had plenty of places to hide. It was all a matter of finding a quiet place and being able to access food and water without too much trouble.

He made his way through the tunnels and out into a subway station. The train arrived and people were getting on and off. Ricky went topside and walked down the busy street. He took note of the number of restaurants, paper stands, bodegas, and stores. There were a few small convenient stores and a bodega, along with a paper stand. He was also nearby a park. Ricky liked to get out when he could to enjoy the fresh air.

Ricky searched for most of the day looking for a good spot to make his new bed. Most of the good places were already taken by other homeless people. Chances were good he would be sleeping behind a pizza shop tonight.

As he passed them by, Ricky managed to pick a few pockets from businessmen. They were always so oblivious when they were looking at their iPhones and PDAs. He took out the cash and left the wallets on the counters of a few hot dog stands.

With the sun going down, Ricky decided it would be a good time to find something to eat. He went behind a restaurant and flipped open the dumpster. It always amazed him what perfectly good food was thrown away because of the sell by date.

After enjoying a piece of stale bread and a bottled coffee beverage from the coffee house with the seal still intact, Ricky decided to go back to the maintenance closet for another night. He walked by the park and saw a few people he recognized. He moved discreetly into the shadow of a tree and waited.

The people he saw were a couple of thugs he had come across in the past. They knew who Ricky was and they would probably kill him if they saw him. Ricky only knew one of their names. He was a weed of a thing, though Ricky was one to talk, had blonde hair sticking out of his beanie and buckteeth. They called him Jack Rabbit and not just because of the teeth. He could run and jump and keep going. Ricky had been kicked by him before and it had forced him into hiding for three days with the rats until Ricky could even think about hobbling topside to the free clinic.

"That bastard!" snarled Jack Rabbit. "I'll cave his head in the next chance I get!"

There was also a reason why Ricky didn't like those guys; he had caught them trying to kidnap some kid two weeks. Ricky didn't know why they had tried to kidnap the kid, but Ricky made sure they didn't get away with her. The one guy wasn't hard to take down, but Jack Rabbit had been a challenge. Jack Rabbit had kicked Ricky in the back of the leg and Ricky had proceeded to take his straight razor Jack's face. It had taken all of Ricky's willpower to get back "home" across town. The subway ride had been agonizing.

From what brief glance Ricky gave them, he could see there was gauze on Jack's face.

"Would you friggin' chill? God! It was just a cut."

"I needed stitches!" yelled Jack Rabbit.

"You weren't dat pretty t' start."

Ricky heard someone being kicked. He smirked at the groan he heard. Leave them with nothing to do and they would probably kill themselves. As much as Ricky was enjoying them beating on each other, he had to get out of there. He didn't want to fight Jack Rabbit again if he could help it.

Ricky slipped between the trees and went for the street.

"Hey, you!" Jack yelled.

"Shit!" hissed Ricky.

Ricky took off at a full sprint. He ran into the street and vaulted over a car that slammed on its brakes to avoid hitting him.

He looked over his shoulder and saw Jack Rabbit right on his heels.

Ricky ran into an alley. He quickly turned around and threw his body. His shoulder slammed into Jack's gut. Jack fell on his back and he kicked his feet up and caught Ricky in the stomach. Now both of them were winded.

Jack jumped to his feet and tried to kick Ricky's legs out from under him. Ricky saw it coming and jumped over his leg. Jack came around and Ricky punched him in the face, right in the gauze. The force knocked Jack back and the blonde howled. Ricky jumped over Jack and ran out into the street. The lights and the screeching tires told Ricky what was about to happen before he felt it.

In fact, he never felt it.

Ricky's next memory was waking up in a forest that made his skin crawl. It took Ricky several moments to get to his feet. He was stiff, but he didn't feel like he had been hit by a car. He knew he should have been hit by a car.

He began making his way to where he thought was the way out. This place was dark and oddly quiet. Ricky grew up in the city where it was never quiet. He shivered. He could hear footsteps. Ricky quickly pulled out his straight razor to fight off whatever was coming.

* * *

Ricky sat up in the loft. The tinted goggles made everything too dark. He pulled them down, noticing it was dusk.

He rubbed at his eyes. That was the last day of his world and the first day of this world.

After climbing down from the loft, Ricky set out for the one thing that would make sense to him: alcohol. He knew there was some in Elrond's library.

He snuck over to the library and started looking for the decanter. It wasn't sitting out like it usually was. Ricky gritted his teeth. Elrond had enough sense to lock his liquor up now that he knew there was an alcoholic in Rivendell.

Ricky left the library and continued his search. There was probably something in the kitchens.

"If you continue to skulk around in the dark, one may think you were into trouble."

The sound of Gandalf's voice made Ricky drop into a defensive crouch. Once he realized he wasn't in danger, he stood up.

"You missed lunch," Gandalf pointed out.

"I fell asleep," Ricky said.

"Would you care to join us for dinner? Everyone is in the dining hall now."

Ricky's nose twitched. "Not the best idea."

"Your fight with Boromir."

Ricky's eyes widened. He looked away. "Great. Everyone knows."

Gandalf nodded. "You left quite an impression on Lord Boromir."

"Tch. Seems like I've been doin' that with everybody."

"You are certainly someone they have not met before," Gandalf pointed out. "Including me. I've never met a boy with so much potential who comes off pretending he is worth nothing."

"Because I am worth nothing."

"No, you are not!" Gandalf angrily reprimanded. "You protected me from Saruman on top of the Orthanc."

"You would've made it out yo'self," Ricky argued. "You didn't need me."

"Then why are you coming on this journey?" Gandalf asked.

"Simple; somebody's gotta keep you focused on what's important."

"Ricky Weiss, by the end of this quest, you will have learned more about yourself than you would have thought," Gandalf announced.

Ricky walked away, throwing a hand up in the air. "Whatever."

Ricky went down to the kitchens and realized he wasn't going to be able to snatch a bottle of liquor with all the Elves moving about. Instead, he went back outside and sprinted off. Stone railings became simple obstacles to vault over and jump to and from. He flipped in the air before landing in the grass. He turned back around and went back the same way he came.

Twisting, flipping, and even freefalling briefly from a roof, Ricky made his way across Rivendell. Everything was an obstacle. He rolled across a railing, flipping before landing on the ground several feet below.

Ricky finally came to a stop. He rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet with his eyes closed. He was high. It was rare that he could do this and be able to enjoy it.

"Master Weiss."

Ricky looked up to see Aragorn watching from a covered walkway above him.

"You do not cease to amaze me with your skill," Aragorn said.

Ricky just gave a nonchalant shrug.

"It is something you enjoy and enjoy greatly." Aragorn didn't miss the small smile on his lips. "Come. Speak with me. You missed dinner and you must be hungry. We can get you some food from the kitchen."

Ricky thought about it for a moment. He ran up and pulled himself up to the covered walkway.

"I'm not really hungry," Ricky admitted.

"Then something to drink." Aragorn took out a waterskin and held it out to Ricky.

Ricky took the waterskin and took a drink, feeling himself coming down from his high.

"I speak for many of us when I ask where you learned such skills," Aragorn said.

"The streets. You learn a lot when you need to survive."

Aragorn frowned. "Have you no family? No uncles or cousins to take you in?"

"I don't remember my parents," Ricky told him. "Either they're dead or they didn't want me. I've been either in foster care or out on the streets by myself for most of my life."

"Foster care?"

Ricky leaned against a pillar. "Ward of the state. The state takes care of you, they decide where you go. The social workers place you in homes people open up to kids who need a place to go."

Aragorn's face softened. "You had somewhere to go."

"Depends on how you look at it." Ricky looked out at Rivendell. "Some kids are lucky and find good foster homes. I wasn't one of them. I always ended up in the crappy ones. The state gives the foster parents money to provide for the kids, but the ones I went to, they never used the money on me."

"What happened to you?" Aragorn asked gently.

"Which time?"

"Perhaps you should start at beginning."

Ricky waited a moment before telling Aragorn. "When I was three, I remembered getting lost in Brooklyn. Some old homeless lady found me and took care of me for a few days. Nobody filed a missing person's report. She took me to the police station and they figured out where I was supposed to be. I didn't go back to that foster home. I was placed somewhere else for two years before I ran away. At the time, I was just getting away from the smell of the house; it made me sick. Now that I'm older, I know they were cooking meth in the basement."

"Meth?" asked Aragorn.

"The stuff is poison and illegal," said Ricky. "It's an upper. Keeps you awake for days, makes your heart race, kills your appetite. The stuff's addictive and dangerous. One thing I never did on the streets was drugs. I saw what that stuff does to other people. I'm not going out like that."

Aragorn was unsure exactly what Ricky was talking about, but any substance that did what he said was dangerous. Healers were always cautious of giving patients certain herbs because of how addictive they could be.

"I started living on the streets after that," Ricky continued. "Stayed under a bridge with some Asian guy. Nice man. He taught me a lot. He died after I turned seven. I got thrown back in foster care. I alternated between homes and the streets until a year ago. That's when I started living permanently in the tunnels."

"What happened a year ago?"

Aragorn was disappointed when Ricky shut him out completely and ran off. He sighed. He should be pleased he learned more about Ricky at all, but he was curious what changed a year ago.

* * *

Ricky went back to the stable. He really wanted that drink now. It always made him want to drink after someone made him tell them about what happened in the past. Even when he didn't tell them, he wanted to drink for just remembering.

He climbed back to the loft and began to stretch. He was useless if he didn't have full range of motion.

Ricky didn't sleep that night. He stayed in the loft gauging what he could use at sparring practice without seriously injuring someone. There wasn't much he could get away with, but God help whoever crossed him with the intent to kill.

His one leg still gave him a little trouble. Jack Rabbit had hit a nerve and it had cramped the muscle. Even after a few weeks and a visit to the free clinic, it was still tight at times.

* * *

Now with the sun up, Elves came into the stables to muck out the stalls and take the horses for rides. Ricky stayed up in the loft, seeing how high he could kick his injured leg. He could get it high enough that he could kick someone in the shoulder.

Ricky finished morning stretches by doing a backflip. The sound his landing made startled an Elf.

Ricky quickly left the stable after the Elf yelled at him. He grabbed a boiled egg from the kitchen and made his way to the training grounds to watch morning training. He had planned on climbing up in a tree to watch, but that plan was quickly scrapped when Aragorn called his name.

"Are you here to join morning training?" Aragorn asked.

"I was just going to watch," Ricky told him.

"Please, join us," said Aragorn. "You will need to choose a weapon for the journey. This will give us the chance to see what is the best weapon for your fighting style."

Ricky shoveled the rest of the boiled egg in his mouth and followed Aragorn to the sidelines.

"The lad is joining us today?" Gimli called. "I would like a rematch with him."

The Elves were standing around along with the Hobbits. Boromir was there, too.

"You will have to wait, Master Dwarf." Glorfindel walked out to the training grounds. "Young Master Ricky has his first spar with me."

"Is that not a little harsh?" asked Elladan.

"You are the best fighter here," Elrohir added.

"I was told Master Weiss has a different style of fighting," Glorfindel said. "I wish to see it first-hand."

Ricky shrank back slightly. "I don't want to hurt you."

Boromir scoffed. "Like you could hurt him."

Ricky glared at Boromir. He turned back to Glorfindel.

Glorfindel smiled. "I doubt you could seriously hurt me, Master Weiss."

"Don't bitch when you can't move somethin'," muttered Ricky.

Glorfindel and Ricky moved to the sparring area.

"Whenever you are ready," Glorfindel told Ricky.

Ricky gave a nod.

Glorfindel smiled. "There is no reason to be nervous. This is just a spar."

Gimli leaned against his axe. There was a smile barely present under his beard. "I hope the Elf knows the lad has some fire in him."

The Hobbits looked over at him.

"Why do you say that?" asked Merry.

"I sparred with the lad yesterday," Gimli explained. "He wouldn't stop even after he hurt himself."

"He's hurt?" asked Sam. "Why is he fighting?"

"T'was only a bruise and a scrape, Master Hobbit," Gimli assured. "His hand is bandaged and he has full use of his arm. He has no excuse for his poor performance."

Ricky attacked first. He charged Glorfindel. The observers saw this was not going to end well for Ricky. Glorfindel readied himself to knock Ricky back.

Ricky dropped and slid between Glorfindel's legs. On the other side, Ricky didn't get to his feet but pushed himself up on his hands and kicked up and back. Glorfindel was turning as Ricky kicked his feet up. Ricky's toes caught Glorfindel in the ribs.

Glorfindel took a few steps back. They knew Ricky had strength in his legs, but never thought he would be able to twist himself in such a way. Ricky jumped back to his feet and faced Glorfindel. Many had trouble seeing his eyes through the darkened lenses, but the rest of his face told them not to take him lightly.

Glorfindel put his hands up ready for a real fight. This time he swung first. Ricky, so much smaller than Glorfindel, ducked under his fist and kicked up high and to the side. His foot hit Glorfindel in the shoulder. Glorfindel didn't stagger back again and kept swinging. Ricky tended to duck away from Glorfindel's blows and would spring back up to kick him in the legs or torso, always careful not to kick somewhere vital.

Ricky pulled away from a swing from Glorfindel and threw a punch of his own. Glorfindel caught his fist. Ricky tried to pry Glorfindel's hand from his fist. Glorfindel grabbed Ricky's other hand.

Ricky yanked back hard and fell back. Glorfindel tumbled with Ricky to the ground, finding himself unable to block Ricky's feet as they connected with his face.

Glorfindel released Ricky and staggered back to his feet. He was dazed and not only did his face hurt, but his neck, too. He was too dizzy to straighten himself up entirely, so he was left doubled over. It was perfect for Ricky's next assault. The boy got back on his feet and struck out with his elbows, bringing them down hard on Glorfindel's shoulders.

Glorfindel punched Ricky in the side. The force knocked Ricky off balance. The blonde Elf decided he needed to put more effort into the spar to properly test Ricky's skills. He didn't wait for Ricky to get his bearings and began punching him. It wasn't near as hard as Ricky had been hitting him, but still hurt. One punch missed where Glorfindel was aiming and hit Ricky in the nose. The boy staggered back, holding his nose and blood dripping between his fingers.

"Master Weiss, forgive me!" Glorfindel apologized. "I was not trying –."

Ricky let out a yell and kicked Glorfindel in the gut. The Elf had the wind knocked out of him. This was much harder than his previous strikes. Something had changed. Ricky's strikes were more brutal. He concentrated on his kicks and his dodges, whipping around and using centrifugal force to add power. He was also attacking from a different position, using his small stature to his advantage and focusing his attacks below Glorfindel's waist. Glorfindel was forced to either kick at Ricky or crouch down himself to strike.

They decided to end the spar after Ricky did a front handspring and kicked Glorfindel in the head with both feet. Glorfindel moved away to give Ricky space, but Ricky was out for blood.

Aragorn ran up behind Ricky and pulled him into a bear hug. "No, Ricky!"

Ricky dropped and slipped his hold and kicked up, hitting Aragorn in the chest. He cartwheeled back out of reach of everyone.

Everyone watched Ricky pant heavily and touch his bloody nose again.

Aragorn slowly approached him with his hands out. Ricky allowed him to take his hand and pull him to the sidelines. Someone fetched Ricky a cloth to stop the bleeding.

Ricky closed in on himself, holding the cloth to his nose. A look from Aragorn sent almost everyone to do something but focus on Ricky.

"Let me see," Aragorn coaxed.

Ricky pushed up his sleeves to show the red marks on his arms. Aragorn saw they were nothing to worry about and pulled Ricky's boots off. There were many broken blood vessels around his ankles and up his shins.

Legolas brought Aragorn ointment and bandages and left again.

Aragorn began gently smearing the ointment on Ricky's forming bruises.

Merry and Pippin were standing nearby. Either they had missed Aragorn's look or they ignored it entirely.

"His feet are so small," Pippin giggled.

Ricky pulled his feet up to hide them in his trousers.

Merry slapped his cousin in the arm.

Aragorn took Ricky's foot again and wrapped it. "One can say Master Weiss's feet are small, but one can say Hobbit feet are large."

Merry and Pippin puffed their chests up with pride at the comment of their large feet.

Aragorn finished bandaging Ricky's feet. "Be careful on your feet. They will need time to heal. We are not leaving for a few days. Take the time to rest."

"Okay," Ricky said quietly.

Ricky didn't move from his spot on the bench while the other sparring matches went on. He was left alone to nurse his bloody nose.

From across the training grounds Aragorn stood beside Legolas.

" _He has no control,_ " Legolas stated. " _He will get himself killed before we are over the Misty Mountains._ "

" _He is strong,_ " Aragorn said.

" _He is reckless,_ " Legolas countered. " _Glorfindel did not fight with his true skill and strength. In a fight against an Orc, the boy would be dead within moments._ "

" _He is part of the Fellowship now. We cannot leave him behind._ "

" _We have not left,_ " said Legolas. " _He is a child. He needs a home. He should not be going on a dangerous journey._ "

" _A child in form,_ " said Aragorn. " _Not in mind._ "

" _It matters not to an Orc,_ " Legolas pressed. " _How can a child of Man have the strength to fight an Orc? He is too small, too thin to be healthy. At best he can run away to escape and find one of us. He cannot hold a sword and he has little skill with a bow._ "

Aragorn had to agree with the Elf. Ricky's limbs were much too thin to be healthy. Aragorn could wrap his hand around his wrist with little trouble. There wasn't an ounce of fat on his frame from what he had heard since Ricky shied away from touches and was always dressed in long sleeves. Those clothes hid his effeminate limbs, keeping people from underestimating him even more. One could dress him as a girl and Aragorn was sure that anyone would be fooled. As for weapons training, he was making quick progress for a complete novice, but he was no Elf who could quickly pick up the skill.

" _I disagree with you,_ " Aragorn said at last. " _He is strong, but he is strong not only in body. As for being reckless, we can teach him control._ "

" _He will not be ready by the time we leave,_ " said Legolas. " _There is not enough time for him to learn._ "

" _No,_ " Aragorn agreed. " _But he will learn what he can. He knows he must._ "

* * *

 **In the end, it is not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years. –Abraham Lincoln**

* * *

 **A good long chapter to hold you over until the next update. So now we know a little more about Ricky's past and what he's had to deal with. Leave a comment in the review box to let me know what you think about Ricky and a bit of his backstory. As the story goes on, more and more will be revealed about him.**


	4. The Journey Begins

**I'm back with a new chapter for the month. I know updates are slow, but I'm trying to get the other projects done. I'm going to post a chapter for _His Body_ later today and then that's one step closer for that story being finished.**

 **Also, there have been a few of you out there saying about Ricky's accent being too exaggerated. It's done on purpose. I have seen first hand how some people deal with accents from other places that they are not familiar with. Quick little story, but backstory first: Where I live, there are people who speak what we call Pennsylvanian Dutch. I don't know a lot of words and it's usually the older generations who know it, but their form of speaking is passed to the children and their children. They can be speaking English, but you can't understand what they say or you may think that it's not proper English. It's like speaking to someone from Scotland or Ireland - speaking English, but you may not be able to understand the accent or the jargon. _Yu Yu Hakusho_ fans, think Jin from the English Anime, good example of what I'm talking about. I grew up around it; no trouble understanding what is being said. **

**Now to the story: My coworker and I were on duty at the same time and we had a family come in and the lady spoke with a PA Dutch accent. I had absolutely no problem understanding her. They had a few questions about something and I took care of them. When they left, my coworker, who grew up in Georgia, turned to me and told me she had no clue what they were saying. That's where I got the inspiration for Ricky's accent to be exaggerated. The Fellowship knows that he's speaking common, but the accent is so different to them. The accent also get's thicker for Ricky when he's wound up. I do the same when I'm irritated or in disbelief. I picked it up from my mother: both of us have been known to start speaking with an accent that's a mix of Irish/Scottish/PA Dutch, mainly Irish, and neither of us have ever been to Ireland or Scotland (I think for me it's because I watch too many Jacksepticeye videos). It's really weird, but can be very entertaining.**

 **So now that that's out of the way, we may proceed with the story you all came here to read. Leave a comment on the review board, check the ending author's notes for the quotes in this chapter, and there'll be another little story at the end that you may either choose to read or ignore. Enjoy.**

* * *

A few days later it was the night before they left. Ricky was staying in his room. He didn't sleep very well, knowing what was coming next. He looked over at where his clothes were laid out for him.

Elrond had ordered Ricky travelling clothes. He would be dressed in shades of brown, green, grey, and black. It would provide excellent camouflage when he needed it. When Elrond told him he would be receiving new clothes, Ricky had been against it at first. When he realized Elrond wasn't going to take no for an answer, he asked to have a set of clothes in black. The new clothes would mix well with the items he had from New York. Elrond had also gifted him with twin daggers. Ricky also had his straight razor blade replaced, courtesy of the Dwarves and Ricky wasn't sure what he had done for them to replace his razorblade. His new pack sat on the floor next to the door.

Ricky got out of bed and dressed himself in his black pants and tunic and his knit hat. He left his room and walked to the gallery. He stared at the broken sword. His reflection stared back at him. He wasn't wearing his goggles and the moonlight and shadows turned his green eyes a strange color.

He saw himself in that sword, not just his reflection. It was a broken sword and he was a broken teen. But the blade was still sharp and so was Ricky. He could still fight, just like the sword that took the fingers off Sauron. He could do this.

Ricky went back to his room. The sun was starting to come up. He saw Frodo leave Bilbo's room, dressed and ready for the journey. As Ricky walked by the open door, he heard someone crying. Bilbo was sitting in a chair with his face in his hands.

"Bilbo?"

The old Hobbit looked up at Ricky. "Master Weiss. You should still be asleep. Young boys need their sleep before going on a quest."

"I don't sleep much. Never did." He came to stand next to Bilbo. "What's wrong?"

"I brought this on him," wept Bilbo. "The Ring should never had come to Frodo. I should have told Gandalf long ago. Now I'm sending him into Mordor. It should be me going. This was all my doing."

Ricky glared down at him. "Bullshit. You couldn't have known what the Ring was at the time. And we're taking care of it now before it falls into the wrong hands."

"He is just a child," Bilbo fought weakly. He couldn't look at Ricky.

Ricky knelt down. "Hey. Look at me."

Bilbo looked up at Ricky.

"I'm still a kid, too. I'm goin', whetha dey like it o' naht."

Bilbo forced a smile. "Your accent is showing through."

"It damn well bettah," Ricky said fiercely. "If dere's one t'ing I loined livin' ahn da streets, it's how t' soivive."

"Watch over him, Ricky," Bilbo said.

Ricky blinked. "I'll do what I can."

Bilbo shook his head. "Take care of him. He's all the family I have left."

Ricky sighed. "Bilbo, I can't promise anything. There is no way I can shadow him 24/7."

Bilbo put his head down in sorrow.

"I can't promise anything. But I can give him what he needs to take care of himself."

Bilbo put his head back up, hope shining in his eyes.

"I don't know how things work here, but on the streets, there are times you have to look after yourself and only yourself. I can give him the tools. Depending on the situation, I can't do much more."

Bilbo took Ricky's hand. "I can accept that. It would be too much to ask for you to constantly look out for him. When I traveled with Thorin Oakenshield's company, I had to defend myself by myself at times."

* * *

After breakfast, the Fellowship went to the terrace, ready to leave. Many Elves joined them to see them off.

"The Ring-bearer is setting out on a quest to Mount Doom," Elrond spoke. "On you who travel with him, no oath or bond is laid to go further than you will. Farewell. May the blessings of Elves and Men and Free Folk go with you."

From the back of the Fellowship, Gandalf announced, "The Fellowship awaits the Ring-bearer."

Frodo turned around and walked passed Gandalf. Gandalf and the rest of the Fellowship began to follow Frodo.

Aragorn was at the back of the procession. He turned to the group of Elves. Arwen was standing among them. He gave her a silent farewell and a nod. She did the same.

Ricky was also at the back and watched Aragorn follow the others. He looked from Aragorn to Arwen. Ricky knew who the Elf maiden was from her brothers, but they never said much to each other than greetings when they passed each other. He gave Arwen two quick, imperceptible nods and filed out after Aragorn.

* * *

The first leg of the journey took them through deep valleys and turbulent waters. Ricky had never been in the wilds before. The closest he came to this much vegetation was Central Park when he got the chance to go to Manhattan.

Aragorn told Ricky what plants were safe to eat. He also showed him which plants could heal and which would poison. Ricky learned to hunt from Aragorn as well. Aragorn even let him use his bow when they weren't starving for meat. Ricky's aim was improving, it wasn't close to Aragorn's, much less Legolas's aim.

Aragorn and Gandalf were the only ones who would get close to Ricky. The Hobbits were curious about Ricky, but they stayed away out of fear. Legolas and Gimli had nothing to talk about with him and Boromir was still angry with Ricky.

Their path west of the Misty Mountains would take forty days and then they would arrive at the Gap of Rohan and turn east to Mordor.

Everyone had a job to do when camp was set up at night. Aragorn and Legolas went hunting, the Hobbits helped with food, Gimli, Boromir, and Ricky alternated getting firewood, and Gandalf stayed to watch the Hobbits when he felt like it. When Gandalf would wander off to do whatever, Ricky was the one to watch the Hobbits. Boromir was never happy with this, saying that Ricky wasn't competent enough to watch four Hobbits. More than once it had almost come to blows between the two.

Tonight was one of the nights Ricky was to stay behind with the Hobbits. Sam was busy getting a stew going. Merry and Pippin were talking about mushrooms. Frodo was sitting quietly on his bedroll.

Ricky got up and went over to Frodo. "Hey." He sat down next to Frodo. "How you holdin' up?"

Frodo looked up at Ricky with big eyes.

Ricky pulled his goggles around his neck. He continued to look at Frodo.

"Why do you do that?" Frodo asked innocently.

"Do what?" Ricky asked.

"Cover your eyes? You have nice eyes."

"Yes!" Pippin called from across the camp. He and Merry hurried over to Frodo and Ricky and sat next to them. "They're a very lovely shade of green."

Ricky leaned back, shy. "Thanks, I think."

Merry tilted his head. "No one has ever told you so before?"

Ricky shook his head.

Gimli returned with a load of firewood.

"Gimli!" Pippin called. "Do you think Ricky has nice eyes?"

Gimli grunted and looked over at Ricky. "Why are you fawning over the lad like a wee lass?"

Sam looked over his shoulder. "Mister Gimli, I would answer their question. They can be relentless."

Gimli walked over to the group and looked at Ricky.

"Don't they look like grass?" Pippin asked the dwarf.

Gimli hummed. "Not unless the grass in the Shire is like emeralds. The lassies will be falling at your feet when you're older, lad."

Ricky put his clear lens goggles on. The firelight distorted the colors under the hard plastic, obscuring everyone's view of his eyes.

Gimli laughed and gave Ricky a slap on the shoulder. "Shy now, laddie?"

Ricky was now very embarrassed.

"All right, leave him alone," Frodo said, shooing Merry and Pippin away.

Gimli went to his bedroll and got out his pipe.

"They are right," Frodo whispered to Ricky. "Your eyes are nice. They're sad, too. You always look sad."

"I don't exactly have much to be happy about," Ricky told him. "I'm alive, but that's just about it."

"What did you want to talk to me about?" Frodo asked. "You have a reason coming over here."

Ricky had to take a few seconds to remember why he came over to Frodo in the first place. "Bilbo told me to look after you."

Frodo looked down at his hands. "He worries."

"He wants me to look after you. I told him I can't."

Frodo's head snapped up to Ricky.

Ricky brought his knees up and leaned back. "I can't look after you all the time. But I can teach you how to look after yourself." He smirked.

"You are going to teach me?" asked Frodo.

Ricky nodded. "Class starts now."

Frodo frowned.

"You ain't gonna learn like I did," Ricky told him. "I don't think anybody would appreciate that. But we're gonna start with the basics."

Ricky spent the rest of the time up until supper was served teaching Frodo how to get a read on people. First impressions were everything and Ricky gave him a crash course on how see who people really were.

"What can you tell me about the Fellowship?" Frodo asked Ricky.

"Tell ya straight, I can't really get that good of a read on Gimli or Legolas, mostly because I don't know that much about Dwarves and Elves. Gandalf has everyone's best interests at heart, but he can be manipulative."

"I believe the term you are looking for is meddlesome," Frodo snickered.

"Different word, same meaning in my opinion. Merry and Pippin are jokesters that I gotta keep my eye on. Sam's got some sense in his head."

"And Strider?"

A strange look crossed Ricky's face. "The first person in a long time who was decent to me and didn't want anythin' in return."

Frodo identified the expression on Ricky's face as something tender. However, it quickly disappeared with his next statement.

"And Boromir's a complete bastard," he spat.

* * *

After supper, those who smoked, which was the entire Fellowship except Legolas and Ricky, smoked, and then watches were set up for the night. Ricky wasn't usually given watch, unless it was first watch. They wanted him to sleep and to eat his portion of the rations.

Tonight's first watch was Gimli.

Ricky wasn't sleeping. He sat up and joined Gimli on watch.

"You should be sleeping, lad."

Ricky hummed. He took out his straight razor. "I gotta ask: why did you replace the blade?"

Gimli snorted. "That was no blade. It was a poor excuse for one. Wouldn't have cut a thing."

"It's cut plenty of times before."

"And now you have a Dwarf forged blade." Gimli pointed to it. "That won't dull easily."

Ricky shook his head. "Why? Why did you make me a new one? I get that the other one was a piece of shit, but why do that for me?"

"You needed a new blade, lad," said Gimli. "Those Elvish knives are only going to get you so far. You needed a good Dwarf made blade. I would have preferred giving you a small axe, but the others believed that you should have something you are familiar with."

"Thanks, Gimli."

Gimli huffed. "You act like no one gives you gifts."

"They don't. It's been a very long time since I got a gift from anybody. Or at least anythin' good."

"I did not realize your family was poor," Gimli said.

"What family? Aragorn didn't tell you? I've been takin' care of myself since I could walk. Sure, there've been a few who looked after me and I can't remember all the foster homes I've been bounced around to, but it's just been me."

"I'm sorry to hear that, lad," Gimli said. "A child should grow up with their family."

"They should, it's not always the case." Ricky shrugged. "You learn to deal in any case."

"Dwarflings are few amongst our people. Each is treated like a great jewel."

There was silence.

"I like Dwarves already, just for that," Ricky said.

"What about Elves?" Gimli asked.

"Eh, they're okay."

More silence.

"What do you think of our route?" asked Gimli.

"I can't say much about it. I don't know this world."

Gimli grunted. "We're taking the long way around. If we could go through the Mines of Moria, we would be on the other side of the Misty Mountains in days, not weeks."

Ricky frowned. "Does Gandalf know that?"

"I'm certain he does, but he does not wish to listen."

Ricky looked ahead. "Maybe he's claustrophobic."

Gimli chuckled. "That may be, but if we go through Moria, we could resupply. My cousin would give us a royal welcome. A feast in our honor! You would do well to put some meat on those bones, lad. Women do not like men who resemble twigs."

Ricky rolled his eyes and slapped Gimli in the arm. This only made Gimli laugh.

Legolas came down from the tree he was sitting in.

"Looks like my watch is over." Gimli extinguished his pipe. "Good night, lad."

Ricky watched Gimli go to his bedroll.

Legolas took Gimli's place. "I believe the Dwarf was hinting you should be sleeping as well."

"Dwarves aren't that subtle," Ricky quipped.

Legolas said nothing.

Ricky looked up at the stars. He had been doing it every night when it wasn't cloudy.

Legolas glanced at Ricky. He could see he was looking up at the sky. "Do you like looking at the stars?"

"I never got to see them back in New York," Ricky said. "On a good night, you could see the moon, but that was about it. The city never slept. There were lights on all year round. The lights are so bright, you wouldn't be able to see the stars."

"The lights must have turned night into day," Legolas said with awe.

"It's not that impressive. Maybe for you, but I grew up with it."

"Light is precious to the Eldar, especially starlight," Legolas told him.

"Never got to see the stars much," said Ricky. "It wasn't just because of the lights of the city, but I lived mostly in the maintenance tunnels. Not much to see there 'cept the rats."

There was silence.

"You should sleep," Legolas said quietly.

"You guys keep tellin' me dat," Ricky grumbled, annoyed.

Ricky didn't move from his seat.

Legolas began singing under his breath.

A few minutes later, Ricky was slumped over. Legolas carefully scooped up Ricky and placed him on his bedroll. Ricky mumbled in his sleep. Legolas covered Ricky with his blanket and smiled.

* * *

They moved on after breakfast. The Hobbits chattered and Gimli chimed in with his stories.

Ricky was quietly at the back with Bill the pony. His mouth was twisted in annoyance. He remembered he fell asleep next to Legolas when he started singing. He was pissed that he had to be sung to sleep like an infant.

Aragorn noticed Ricky's mood and dropped back to the back of the Fellowship. "What has you in a foul mood this morning? You seemed to have slept well last night. There should be no reason for this."

"Fifteen frickin' years old and I get sung to sleep like a baby," snapped Ricky.

Aragorn knew what he was talking about. Legolas had mentioned Ricky was awake for Gimli's watch and would not go back to his bedroll when he was asked. The Elvish languages had their own power which Legolas used to get Ricky to sleep.

Aragorn sighed. "You needed to sleep."

"'You need to sleep. You need to eat more.' Did you stop an' t'ink maybe I know what I need?" Ricky barked. "I t'ink I know what my own body needs. Took care of myself for dis long, I t'ink I can take care of myself for da journey." He dashed ahead and ended up walking next to Boromir.

Boromir was shocked to see Ricky walking next to him.

"Not a damn word," Ricky growled when he saw him open his mouth to speak.

Boromir closed his mouth and continued to walk on.

* * *

They didn't stop until dusk. Gandalf said they were now in Hollin and they made camp on top of a large hill.

Legolas approached Ricky. "I know you are upset with what happened last night. I do not seek your forgiveness."

"You wouldn't be gettin' it," Rick interrupted.

Legolas ignored the comment. "I will be your sparring partner this evening."

"Fine."

"We will be practicing your dagger technique," Legolas told him.

"You mean the lack thereof," Ricky muttered.

The Hobbits watched Ricky and Legolas spar.

"Ricky is really good," said Pippin.

"Legolas is better," Sam said.

"He's an Elf," Frodo put him. "He would be better."

Ricky lost his grip on one blade and dropped it. He blocked Legolas's next attack. He ducked under Legolas's second dagger and hooked his leg around Legolas's. Legolas fell back. Ricky tried to pin him, but Legolas kicked him in the stomach. Ricky went down on his butt. Legolas got to his feet and stood over him.

Ricky looked up at Legolas, his eyes glancing at something on the ground before looking back up to Legolas. Ricky's foot shot out and caught Legolas in the knee. The Elf let out a cry as his leg buckled. Ricky swept his leg around and up and hitting Legolas in the chin. He continued to turn himself over and got to his feet, grabbing his second dagger from the ground. He put his daggers up, ready to keep going.

Legolas was able to stand on his leg. It ached, but Ricky could have kicked him much harder. He watched Ricky change his grip on his right dagger so he could use it to block more effectively.

"Block with your left," Aragorn coached from the sideline. "You can attack more effectively with your right."

Ricky blinked several times behind his goggles. "Yeah, if I was right-handed. I'm a lefty."

Legolas lowered his daggers. "I have watched you draw your bow with your right hand."

"'Cause that's how I was shown." Ricky lowered his daggers as well. "Figured since I never held a bow before, I could learn to shoot righty instead of lefty."

Legolas stepped forward and Ricky put up his guard again. Legolas gave a small smile. "You keep your guard up. This is good. We are done for tonight."

* * *

Watch was set up after dinner. Ricky wasn't given watch and was told very bluntly by more than one person in the Fellowship to get some sleep.

Ricky waited until most were asleep before sitting up on his bedroll. He had made his bed next to a rock. He propped his legs up on the rock and stretched them out completely. With a deep breath, Ricky leaned forward to have his head at his knees.

"What are you doing?" asked a quiet voice.

Ricky turned his head. Frodo was sitting up in his bedroll. "Stretching. Go back to sleep."

Frodo blinked. "You're not sleeping and you're supposed to be."

"Little Hobbits need their sleep," Ricky said. "You need your strength to walk and run your mouths."

Frodo lay down and turned away from Ricky.

Ricky finished his stretches and looked over at Frodo. "You're not sleepin', are you? Get over here."

Frodo rolled over and came over to Ricky's bedroll. Ricky moved aside for Frodo to lie down. He coaxed him onto the blankets.

"What's wrong?" Ricky asked.

"Nothing," Frodo said quietly.

"Liar," Ricky hissed. "It's the Ring, isn't it?"

Frodo said nothing.

"What's it sayin'?" Ricky asked.

"It says it will give me what I want," Frodo answered.

Ricky gave a small nod.

"It says it will not hurt my friends," Frodo added. "I only have to return it."

"And?" Ricky looked down at the curly dark hair below his shoulder. "What are you thinkin'?"

"The Ring must be destroyed," Frodo said firmly.

Ricky nodded. "Yeah, but that's not my question."

"It must be destroyed. If it's not destroyed, Sauron wins or another will have to face this journey. I do not wish this on anyone else."

There was silence.

"People lie."

Frodo looked up at Ricky.

Ricky was looking up at the sky, his eyes distant. "They lie all the time. You can't believe a word that comes out of their mouths. And there are times when believing them could be a matter of life and death. Believe them and they could kill you. Don't believe them and you can end up dead. Ya gotta make a judgment call. I made mine when you said you would take the Ring to Mordor."

Frodo's mouth opened to say something.

Ricky turned back to Frodo. "Which brings me to something else. There's always the chance I'll end up dead, but who am I dyin' for? A hero or a liar?"

"I don't want anyone to die for me," Frodo whimpered.

"Frodo, I've always considered myself lucky to get to my next birthday," Ricky told him. "I should've ended up dead long already."

Frodo didn't want to think about death. "When is your birthday?"

"In a few weeks," Ricky replied. "At least I think my birthday's in March."

Frodo frowned. "How do you not know your birthday?"

Ricky shrugged. "I never really celebrated my birthday. I don't have real parents or parents at all when you think about it. No one told me when it was. So I picked one out when I thought it was."

"So when do you think it is?" Frodo asked.

"March 25," replied Ricky.

Frodo smiled a little. "That is a fine time for a birthday. It is the time for hope."

Ricky frowned. "Hope?"

"The snow is melting, the sun is out more, the birds start singing, and the early spring flowers are just starting to come up. Winter is almost over, but spring has not arrived fully yet."

"Huh. Never thought of it that way," said Ricky.

Frodo settled down on the bedroll to sleep. "You always see the bad."

"That's because I don't see much good." He sighed. "'Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without words, and never stops at all.'"

Frodo hummed sleepily. "Birds are nice. Unless they're in Uncle Bilbo's garden."

Ricky noticed Frodo went straight to sleep after that.

* * *

In the morning, Sam made breakfast for everyone. Boromir was holding sword lessons for Merry and Pippin.

Aragorn was sitting nearby having a smoke. "Move your feet," he told Pippin from around his pipe.

Sam brought Frodo a plate of sausage to get him to eat more. Ricky wasn't the only one who hadn't been eating. Frodo seemed to be in a good mood that morning and Sam wondered if it had anything to do with Frodo sharing a bedroll with Ricky.

The rest of the Fellowship was spread out on the rocks. Ricky was watching the Hobbits and Boromir, but everyone could hear Gimli as he tried to get Gandalf to change their route.

"If anyone was to ask me my opinion, which I note they're not, I'd say we were taking the long way 'round. Gandalf, we could pass through the Mines of Moria. My cousin, Balin, would give us a royal welcome."

"No, Gimli. I would not take the road to Moria unless I had no other choice," Gandalf told the Dwarf quietly.

Legolas moved easily from boulder to boulder. He faced south and was looking at something in the sky. Gandalf noticed it as well.

Boromir hit Pippin's hand with his sword. Pippin yelped and dropped his sword.

"Sorry!" cried Boromir, lowering his sword to check on Pippin.

Pippin kicked Boromir in the shin and Merry smacked him with the flat of his sword. The Hobbits knocked Boromir down.

"Get him!"

"For the Shire!"

Boromir laughed and wrestled with the Hobbits.

Aragorn got up. "Gentlemen, that's enough." He went to break up the fight. The Hobbits grabbed his legs and flipped him onto his back.

By now the others were noticing what Legolas and Gandalf had. It was dark and moving towards them.

"What is that?" Sam asked.

"Nothing, just a wisp of cloud," Gimli dismissed.

"It's moving fast," said Boromir, getting up from his wrestling match with the Hobbits. "Against the wind."

It was getting closer and spreading out into individual dark specks in the sky.

"Crebain from Dunland!" yelled Legolas.

"Hide!" Aragorn ordered urgently.

It was a mad scramble to gather their things and hide.

Ricky ended up sharing the brush with Legolas. They both watched as the abnormally large crows circled around their camp, screeching loudly.

After a few moments, they moved back to the south.

The Fellowship came out of hiding.

"Spies of Saruman," Gandalf told them. "The passage south is being watched. We make for the Pass of Caradhas."

They all looked at the snow covered mountain.

* * *

They spent the morning hiking through the snow. Ricky was glad he kept his Under Armour handy and slipped it on under his clothes before they packed up camp properly. He was sweating before they reached the snow, but was quickly becoming comfortable as they climbed.

Ricky somehow managed to be walking with Gandalf.

"What has your thoughts, Master Ricky?" Gandalf suddenly asked.

Ricky looked over at him. "He knows."

Gandalf turned to him.

"Saruman knows where we're at," Ricky clarified. "But you already know that, don't you?'

"What makes you believe Saruman knows where we are?" Gandalf asked.

"Those birds circled like they knew there was something there for them," Ricky told him. "I've seen pigeons do it enough of times when they think there's food. They came straight to us and left. They didn't circle anywhere else."

"That could be true," Gandalf said. "But how are you so sure? Experience?"

"Only with people," Ricky answered. "Guess you can call it intuition."

They heard Boromir scoff. "Intuition? You sound like a woman, Master Weiss."

"And you're bein' a dick," Ricky shot off.

"Ricky, be nice to Boromir," Pippin complained.

"What has he ever done to you?" Merry asked.

Ricky shot a glare back to both of them, but didn't answer. He knew as much as the others that he really had no cause not to like Boromir. Sure he was a prideful pain in the ass, but Ricky had dealt with worse and still was somewhat civil to them.

A snowball hit Ricky in the back. He whipped around and glared at Merry and Pippin. Pippin pointed at Merry.

"Hey!" Merry cried indignantly.

Ricky scooped up some snow and balled it up and hurled it at Pippin's chest. Merry laughed, but was hit in the arm by a second snowball from Ricky. Ricky's hands were fast as he made snowballs and his aim was almost impeccable. He lobbed several over the heads of the Fellowship and still struck Merry and Pippin. The Hobbits got a few shots in as well, but Ricky would crouch down and other members of the Fellowship became casualties. Their game was brought to an end when a snowball took off Gandalf's hat.

"Shit!" hissed Ricky, quickly becoming serious and walking beside Sam.

Gandalf whirled around and glared at the Hobbits and Ricky. He saw Ricky's innocent look and saw the Hobbits were trying not to look guilty. It was difficult to see who actually threw that particular snowball, but there was a possibility that none of them were certain who did it. He picked up his hat and placed it back on his head.

Ricky looked down at Sam. "Whoops," he mouthed.

Sam rolled his eyes at Ricky. "Bad as a Took."

* * *

They continued to climb the mountain. Ricky dropped back to the rear with Aragorn. Any play that was in the Hobbits and Ricky was now gone as they climbed higher. Ricky felt horribly sick, but he was pushing through it.

"Remember to breathe," Aragorn told him quietly.

"Whadiya t'ink I'm doin'?" Ricky panted.

Aragorn didn't have the chance to answer because Frodo had stumbled and was rolling down the mountain.

"Frodo!" Aragorn and Ricky called.

Aragorn stopped Frodo from rolling and picked him up.

Frodo brushed himself off. He touched at his collar. The Ring was missing. It was laying where Frodo had stumbled.

Boromir picked it up and stared at it, transfixed.

The rest of the Fellowship had stopped and Ricky took note that Gandalf had turned to watch.

"Boromir?" Aragorn called.

"It is a strange fate that we should suffer so much fear and doubt over so small a thing," Boromir said. He brought his other hand up to take the Ring.

"Boromir!" snapped Aragorn.

Boromir snapped out of his trance.

"Give the Ring to Frodo."

Boromir slowly walked over to them. "As you wish." He held it out to Frodo.

Frodo snatched it out of Boromir's hands.

"I care not," Boromir added with a soft laugh.

Aragorn gave Boromir a distrustful look.

With another chuckle, Boromir ruffled Frodo's hair and walked back up with the rest of the Fellowship.

Ricky saw Aragorn remove his hand from his sword out of the corner of his eye. He had his own hand around his straight razor if he needed to use it.

* * *

They continued on and the weather turned from cold and sunny to a blizzard. They trudged through the snow on a narrow ledge of the mountain. Ricky was a little put off by how high they were and the lack of visibility. He once almost fell to his death in an abandoned part of the tunnels when his flashlight died. A tunnel below him had collapsed and left a deep shaft and Ricky never saw it until he stepped into nothingness. He had managed to grab the edge of the hole and pulled himself up before it was too late.

The Hobbits were being carried by Aragorn and Boromir. Aragorn was also leading Bill at the back. Gimli was completely covered in snow and his red hair was now white. Gandalf was in the front, pushing snow aside with his staff. Ricky was walking behind Gandalf, tamping down snow to make it easier for the ones behind to walk on.

Ricky noticed someone beside him on top of the snow. "What?" he asked in disbelief.

Legolas was walking on top of the snow, moving ahead of them slowly. He was the only one who was able to see through the blinding snow.

"You gotta be kiddin' me," Ricky muttered. "That is so not fair."

Legolas stopped in front of them. "There is a fell voice on the air."

Ricky pushed his knit hat off one ear.

"Cuiva nwalca Carnirasse; nai yarvaxea rasselya!"

"It's Saruman!" yelled Gandalf

There was a rumble of thunder. They looked up and saw rocks from above them falling.

"Fuck!" yelled Ricky. He pushed himself against the mountain side.

"He's trying to bring down the mountain!" Aragorn shouted. "Gandalf! We must turn back!"

"No!" Gandalf climbed up on the snow and held up his staff. "Losto Caradhras, sedho, hodo, nuitho i ruith!"

Ricky grabbed Gandalf by the robes. Saruman's voice seemed louder when he did. Ricky's mouth twisted into a snarl. Saruman was supposed to protect Middle Earth and here he was fighting them. To Ricky, it wasn't a question of how could he betray them, it was why. "'He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you!'" Ricky roared.

No one took noticed of the horrified expression on Boromir's face.

"So you bettah make yo' peace befo'e you go ta hell, you white sonavabitch!" shouted Ricky.

Gandalf felt Saruman falter, but it wasn't enough.

"Cuiva nwalca Carnirasse; Nai yarvaxea rasselya; taltuva notto-carinnar!" Saruman continued.

The wind picked up even more and black storm clouds swirled around above their heads. Lightning cracked across the sky and struck the mountain. Rock and snow fell down.

Ricky and Legolas pushed Gandalf against the mountain as the others did the same. The snow buried them completely.

There were several long moments as the Fellowship dug themselves out of the snow.

"We must get off the mountain!" called Boromir urgently. "Make for the Gap of Rohan and take the West road to my city!"

"The Gap of Rohan takes us too close to Isengard," Aragorn argued.

"We cannot pass over the mountain," Gimli chimed in. "Let us go under it. Let us go through the Mines of Moria."

A concerned look planted itself on Gandalf's face. It was then for certain that Ricky knew Gandalf was hiding something from them.

"Make a decision!" Ricky said irritably. "The Hobbits aren't gonna last if this storm keeps up."

Everyone looked at Gandalf.

"Let the Ring-bearer decide," Gandalf said.

Everyone turned their attention to Frodo.

"We cannot stay here!" Boromir yelled. "This will be the death of the Hobbits!"

"Frodo," Gandalf said.

The weight of the decision was weighing heavily on Frodo, it was clear on his face. He met Gandalf's eye. "We will go through the Mines."

* * *

It took them the rest of the day to get off the mountain. Ricky pulled his weight by carrying Pippin on his back at one point. Once they were out of the blizzard, he began regretting the decision to carry that particular Hobbit.

"How did you do that?" asked Pippin.

"Do what?" Ricky asked.

"Help Gandalf like you did?"

Ricky looked at the curly head on his shoulder. "I didn't do anything."

"But you must have. Gandalf seemed to be getting the upper hand for a brief moment. Are you magic, Ricky?"

"You know, I have the strongest urge to either drop you in the snow or toss you back to Boromir."

"No," whined Pippin, snuggling deeper into Ricky's cloak and shoulder. "You're so warm."

Ricky rolled his eyes behind his goggles. "Hey, Boromir! Trade ya?"

Boromir looked behind him and shook his head. "You volunteered, Master Weiss."

"I remember volunteering to carry a Hobbit," said Ricky. "I didn't say which one."

Boromir kept walking, but smiled when his back was turned to Ricky.

"Have fun, Pip!" Merry called.

* * *

 **Hope is the thing with feathers, that perches in the soul, and sings the tune without words, and never stops at all. – Emily Dickinson**

 **He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you. – Friedrich Nietzsche**

* * *

 **Now this other thing I have to say doesn't have anything to do with _Quote the Pauper Forevermore_ , so if you want to skip over it and go about your lives, you can. Review the chapter and then check out one of my other stories or a story you've been following by someone else. In that case, I'll see you next time. For those who want to stick around for the next little story, here it is. And warning, some audiences may find this topic very sensitive: Politics.**

 **I went to the movies yesterday and saw that Dinesh D'Souza film, _Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party_. People were making a fuss about it on the radio - good things, bad things - I decided to go see it for myself and draw my own conclusions. If you get the chance to see it, go see it and form your own opinion about it, not just go by what the critic reviews say. It's not in all movies theaters, so I ended up having to go two towns over to a theater it was playing at and it was worth a Monday afternoon that I had nothing to do. It doesn't matter what your political affiliation is, if you're a Clinton supporter or a Trump supporter or don't care about the election, it's worth seeing. I went to see it from a historical point and ended up walking away with more information than I had with a semester's worth of American history in high school. I'm actually interested in looking up some of the people they mentioned, mainly Ida B. Wells. Worth seeing to learn about some of the historical figures. They're usually glossed over in favor of dates and bills.**


	5. What Lurks in the Dark

**It's been awhile. I ended up editing this chapter several times because I wasn't happy with the results. This is a big chapter since we will be covering Moria in this one. Also, there's a bit more of Ricky's backstory here. Enjoy and leave a comment on the review board.**

* * *

Saruman was fuming. His plan to stop Gandalf and the others on Caradhas had failed. It did not help that the boy had a hand in it. He could not understand how a normal boy could make him falter in his spell. It should not have been possible.

It did not really matter. Saruman had changed their course to take them through Moria. If the goblins did not take care of them, Durin's bane would. And nothing Gandalf and that boy could do would stop it.

But Saruman was still troubled by the boy. When he first saw him, Saruman knew the boy was special. However, there was no magic in him. He was not an Istar from some foreign land and he was no magician. So why was he able to cause Saruman to falter?

" _He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you."_

The boy's words echoed in Saruman's head.

" _He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you."_

It was not the boy who was the problem, but his words. They could be persuasive. There was little the boy could do to influence people as long as he stayed ignorant of this knowledge. He was not a threat at the moment. Saruman would have to eliminate the boy. But how?

Perhaps it was not a matter of eliminating the boy, but turning him against Gandalf. The chances were slim they would survive Moria, but if they did, Saruman had plans for the boy.

* * *

The Fellowship went back to where their camp was at Hollin. They had almost lost the light. Gimli got a fire going and Sam began cooking supper. The Hobbits were still very cold and gathered around the fire. Ricky took his usual seat on the edge of camp, able to look at everything.

"Ricky, give an old man some company," Gandalf called to him.

Ricky got up from his seat and came to sit next to Gandalf.

"That was a very brave thing you did on the mountain," Gandalf said.

"And what you did was stupid," Ricky told him. "Climbing out on the edge of the ledge like that. Crazy old man." Ricky elbowed Gandalf. It was only a love tap, but it got his point across.

Gandalf glared down at him.

Ricky looked up. He wasn't wearing his goggles and it was easy to see his green eyes. He had been worried about Gandalf.

"What you said today was very true," Gandalf continued.

Ricky nodded. "Lived it," he whispered. He swallowed hard. "I've been around monsters all my life. They may look human, but those are the worst monsters."

"And you?" Gandalf asked. "Have you become a monster?"

Ricky clenched a fist and looked down at it. "Not sure anymore." He got up and went to his bedroll. He didn't eat his supper that night.

After a couple hours of sleep, Ricky woke up to a noise. Aragorn was on watch. Ricky took his flashlight out of his pack and went over to Aragorn.

"Did you hear that?" Ricky asked Aragorn.

"No," replied Aragorn. "What did you hear?"

"Not sure," Ricky muttered, his eyes scanning the area. His finger hovered over the switch on the flashlight.

A loud howl sounded. Ricky flipped on his flashlight and caught a set of eyes charging out of the rocks.

Aragorn drew his sword. "Wargs!"

Ricky jumped up and was shocked to see the massive twisted wolves that were Wargs. But shock gets you killed and Ricky knew it. He immediately drew his Elvish daggers, dropping the flashlight. He cut the tendons of one Warg before stabbing it in the chest.

Legolas was up and firing his arrows into several of the Wargs. Gimli slammed his axe down into one with a yell. Aragorn, Boromir, and Gandalf slashed them with their swords. The Hobbits were shoved by the fire to keep them safe.

Bill the pony was in a panic. A Warg was creeping up on what it thought was an easy meal. Ricky saw the stalking Warg and threw one of his daggers at it. The Warg howled in pain. Legolas quickly put an end to it with an arrow.

Gandalf shouted something and slammed his staff on the ground. A blast of magic sent the Wargs running.

Ricky retrieved his dagger out of the body of the Warg.

"Be aware where you throw your daggers," Legolas told him. "Your form is sloppy."

Ricky twitched his nose. "It works." He also retrieved his flashlight.

No one got much sleep. They packed up and moved on after burning the bodies of the Wargs they killed.

* * *

It was another two days before their next incident. Ricky had woken up early. Sam was also awake and preparing breakfast. Legolas had last watch and was sitting on a rock. The sky was lightening in the east.

Ricky moved over to Sam.

"Good morning, Mr. Weiss."

"You know you can just call me Ricky."

Sam nodded. "I was only being polite."

"Sam, if you haven't figured it out yet, being polite isn't something I'm used to. If you gotta get my attention, yell my name. The Mister-Master stuff is just a waste of breath."

"Yes, sir," said Sam.

"And 'sir' suggests that I deserve respect," Ricky added. "I don't."

"Oh, Mr. Weiss, you may be coarse, but you deserve respect, sir," Sam sweetly argued.

Ricky blinked. "Thanks."

Ricky suddenly jumped up and started looking around. "Hey, Legolas, did you hear something?"

Legolas drew an arrow from his quiver. "Wolves!"

Everyone jumped up, grabbing their weapons. The wolves, as typical predators do, went after the weakest. The Hobbits were quickly pushed to the fire once again so the others could keep track of them.

Ricky kicked a wolf in the jaw. The wolf snarled at him. Ricky snarled back. The wolf charged and so did Ricky. Ricky was knocked back, being the smaller opponent, but he flipped the wolf so it was on the ground. He snarled and pinned the wolf, going as far as biting its ear. The wolf yelped. Ricky punched it in the head a couple of times before letting it up. The wolf decided he wasn't worth the aggravation and ran off.

Gandalf scared the rest of the wolves with a burst of magic.

Ricky grabbed his flashlight and shined it around the area, looking for eyes. There were none.

"That was foolish!" Boromir scolded Ricky. "That wolf could have killed you!"

"They weren't that hungry," Ricky said, putting his flashlight away. "I've seen starved dogs fight harder for food. Probably tryin' to run us off. Besides, what do you care?"

Ricky went back to his bedroll and laid down.

A few minutes later, Frodo crawled over to Ricky's bedroll. "Ricky, are you sleeping?"

"If I was, I'm not now," Ricky responded. "Whadiya want?"

"Do you think I'm a monster?"

Ricky nearly knocked Frodo down as he whipped around to face him. "What da hell makes you say dat?"

Frodo reached up to touch the Ring under his shirt.

Ricky sighed. "God. Frodo, what do you think?"

"I am not a monster," Frodo replied.

"There's your answer," Ricky told him.

"What if you do not know?"

"Frodo, there is no way you've done all the stuff I've done," said Ricky. "I've done some stuff that would get me a twenty year prison sentence. I'm here with you to destroy the Ring. I think it's safe to say if I'm not a monster, you're not a monster."

"Really?" Frodo looked down at Ricky with large blue eyes.

"Yeah," said Ricky.

From across the camp, Gandalf overheard Ricky say he wasn't a monster. He gave a small smile and went back to his pipe.

* * *

After breakfast, they continued on. Gandalf told them they should reach the west entrance to Moria by the end of the day.

It was dusk when they saw the ruins of an aqueduct in the mist and ice of the mountains.

Gandalf beckoned to Frodo. "Frodo, come and help an old man."

Frodo hurried up to Gandalf and let him lean on him.

"How is your shoulder?" Gandalf asked.

"Better than it was," Frodo answered.

"And the Ring?" Gandalf and Frodo stopped. "You feel its power growing, don't you? I've felt it, too. You must be careful now. Evil will be drawn to you from outside the Fellowship. And, I fear, from within."

The rest of the Fellowship was passing them by. Boromir passed them at that moment. Gandalf and Frodo glanced at him.

"Who then do I trust?" Frodo asked Gandalf.

"You must trust yourself," Gandalf told him. "Trust your own strengths."

Frodo frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"

"There are many powers in this world for good and for evil. Some are greater than I am. And against some I have not yet been tested."

"Ricky once told me I have to make a judgment call," Frodo said.

Gimli came up to them and stopped, staring in wonder. "The Walls of Moria."

A sheer cliff loomed in front of them.

Ricky was reminded the sky scrapers back in New York. The size was impressive and inspired awe. However, Ricky felt he didn't appreciate it as much as the others. He grew up around sky scrapers. But perhaps it was nature that impressed him in a different way. He was still amazed by the mountains, the clean air and water, and the vibrant plants even in the wintertime. Ricky never got to see anything like that unless he was in Central Park, which he got there every few weeks.

To get to the Walls they had to walk across a narrow path made up of slippery rocks, thanks to the lake in front of the Walls.

"Dwarf doors are invisible when closed." Gimli tapped his axe on the rock.

Gandalf spoke up from the front. "Yes, Gimli, their own masters cannot find them if their secrets are forgotten."

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" Legolas asked from behind Gimli.

Gimli gave a disgusted sniff at the Elf's comment.

Frodo slipped and one foot went into the water. A hand shot out and pulled him back onto the ground and on his feet. Frodo looked behind him and saw Ricky. Ricky released Frodo and they kept walking.

Gandalf stopped at a smooth place in the wall framed by two gnarled and twisted trees. There were very faint lines on the wall.

"Isilden," he murmured. "It mirrors only starlight and moonlight."

The moon came out from behind thick dark clouds.

The lines on the wall glowed brightly and became clearer and bolder. The image was an arched doorway with lettering in another language at the top. There were also seven stars and a crown that Ricky could see from the place he was standing.

"It reads, 'The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak friend and enter.'"

"What do you suppose that means?" Merry called.

"It's simple," Gandalf told them confidently. "If you are a friend, you speak the password and the doors will open."

Gandalf raised his arms. "Annon Edhellen, edro hi ammen!"

A cold wind blew, causing Frodo to shiver. Other than that, nothing happened.

Undaunted, Gandalf tried again. "Fennas Nogothrim, lasto beth lammen."

Again, nothing happened.

Gandalf dropped his arms.

"Nothing's happening," Pippin said.

Gandalf pushed against the walls. "I once knew every spell in all the tongues of Elves, Men, and Orcs."

"What are you going to do then?" Pippin asked.

"Knock your head against these doors, Peregrin Took!" Gandalf angrily replied. "And if that does not shatter them, and I am allowed a little peace from foolish questions, I will try to find the opening words."

Ricky raised his eyebrows. "Gonna have to remember that one."

They sat outside the Mines for two hours as Gandalf tried to find the opening words. Ricky knew it was two hours because he had checked his pocket watch. It wasn't as accurate as he wanted it to be, but it still kept track of how many hours went by.

In all honesty, Ricky had forgotten about the pocket watch. He had lifted it a while back and was going to sell it, but had forgotten about it. He had hid it where he hid all of his other valuables – in his first aid kit – and found it during the journey when he needed bandages. The gold pocket watch had been wrapped up in a roll of bandages.

Aragorn and Sam unpacked Bill.

"The Mines are no place for a pony," Aragorn told Sam, taking the last of his stuff off. "Even one as brave as Bill."

"Buh-bye, Bill," Sam told the pony sorrowfully.

Aragorn got the pony turned around. "Go on, Bill. Go on." He gave him a slap on the rump and Bill trotted off. "Don't worry, Sam. He knows his way home."

Pippin began throwing rocks into the water out of boredom. Aragorn came around caught his arm as Pippin was about to throw another rock.

"Do not disturb the water," Aragorn said ominously.

Gandalf threw his staff down with a muttered surrender and sat beside Frodo. He took off his hat in his despair.

Ricky had a pessimistic thought about the Doors. "This is gonna suck if these doors are like some of the stuff back home."

"Why do you say that?" asked Frodo.

"Well, some stuff with passwords lock you out permanently after so many tries," replied Ricky. "It keeps people who aren't supposed to be in it out. Though if you do forget the password, there's usually another way to get it."

"And if there isn't one?" Frodo asked.

"You're S.O.L."

Frodo and Gandalf frowned at Ricky in confusion.

"Shit outta luck," Ricky elaborated.

Meanwhile, Aragorn and Boromir were looking at something moving the water.

Ricky kept talking. "Then again, if Dwarves are as stupid as the some of the Elves have told me, I don't think there's a lockout. And I think that the answer would be staring us right in the face. Probably would have bit us if it had teeth."

At Ricky's words, Frodo looked up at the inscription. "It's a riddle," he said quietly. "Speak friend and enter. Gandalf, what's the Elvish word for friend?"

"Mellon," Gandalf replied.

The rock divided and two large doors swung outward.

Gandalf chuckled in triumph.

The Fellowship gathered their things and entered.

Gandalf placed a crystal on his staff.

The Mines were pitch black and what little moonlight came through the doors was not enough to light the threshold. Ricky, used to dim light and using only shadows to find his way, noticed something wrong. He immediately got in front of the Fellowship and smelled the familiar scent found in forgotten tunnels.

Gimli couldn't help but boast. "Soon, Master Elf, you will enjoy the fabled hospitality of the Dwarves; roaring fires, malt beer, red meat off the bone."

Gandalf cupped his hand to the crystal and breathed a few words. The crystal began to give off a white light that lit up the chamber.

"This, my friend, is the home of my cousin, Balin," Gimli continued. "And they call it a mine. A mine," he added amused.

"Oh, damn," breathed Ricky.

Skeletons of Dwarves were scattered around the chamber in rusting armor. Axes and arrows stuck out of their corpses.

The Fellowship looked on in horror.

"This is no mine," Boromir said grimly. "It is a tomb."

"No," Gimli cried, running over to a skeleton. "No! No! NO!"

Legolas went to another skeleton and pulled a crude arrow out of it. "Goblins." He threw the arrow down and drew one of his own.

Everyone else drew their swords and began to back away to the entrance.

Ricky hurried to the Hobbits, looking over his shoulder at the darkness as he went.

"We make for the Gap of Rohan," Boromir told Aragorn quietly. "We should never have come here."

The Hobbits scrambled back to the door, their backs to the water.

"Now, get out of here," Boromir ordered. "Get out!"

Ricky stopped looking behind him. He saw that there was something moving in the water behind the Hobbits.

"Move!" His voice cracked harshly as he yelled at them. He grabbed Pippin and Sam and pushed them behind him.

Frodo was pulled to the ground. A thick tentacle was wrapped around his leg. Pippin, Merry, and Ricky all grabbed Frodo.

"Strider!" Sam yelled before joining them.

Ricky started hacking at the tentacle with one dagger. However, his dagger wasn't enough to cut through.

"Get off him!" Sam swung his own sword down on the tentacle, slicing it off where Ricky had started cutting.

The wounded tentacle retreated below the surface.

Merry and Pippin hurried to pull Frodo away from the water.

More tentacles burst out of the water. The Hobbits and Ricky were beaten back while the creature in the water grabbed Frodo again. Frodo was flung up in the air, a few more tentacles wrapping around him.

Legolas ran out of the Mines and shot one tentacle.

Aragorn and Boromir jumped into the water and started hacking away at the tentacles.

The creature's head emerged from the water, showing its giant humanlike face.

"What da hell is dat t'ing?" Ricky shouted.

It opened its mouth and held Frodo over it.

Boromir sliced a tentacle off. Aragorn cut another one. The creature was startled and dropped Frodo into Boromir's arms.

"Into the Mines!" yelled Gandalf.

"Legolas!" shouted Boromir.

Legolas shot the creature in the eye to give them time to get out of the water.

"Run!" Aragorn yelled.

They rushed into the Mines. Behind them, the creature followed them, climbing out of the water.

Ricky knew the sound of crumbling rock when he heard it. He didn't need to look behind him to know the creature was causing a cave in. The others were getting ahead of Ricky.

The Fellowship heard a high pitched scream of pain as the rocks came tumbling down. They were plunged into darkness.

"We now have but one choice," they heard Gandalf say ominously. He slammed his staff on the ground and lit up the chamber with his crystal. "We must face the long dark of Moria. Be on your guard. There are older and fouler things than Orcs in the deep places of the world."

Gandalf began leading the way up a flight of stairs. "Quietly now. It's a four day journey to the other side. Let us hope that our presence will go unnoticed."

On the other side of the stairs was a massive cavern with narrow bridges that led to different areas.

Ricky was amazed. The tunnels were nothing like this.

* * *

They travelled on a narrow ledge with ladders and ropes running the height of the cavern. No one spoke.

Gandalf ran his hand over the rock. The rock had veins of silver running through it. "The wealth of Moria was not in gold or jewels, but mithril."

Gandalf held his staff over the edge of the ledge. The entire depth was lit up in a silver light. The Fellowship looked down in awe. It was beautiful, but anyone could see the area had been abandoned for a long time.

"Bilbo had a shirt of mithril rings that Thorin gave him," Gandalf said.

"Oh, that was a kingly gift!" Gimli exclaimed.

"Yes," Gandalf agreed. "I never told him, but its worth was greater than the value of the Shire."

* * *

They went on until the Hobbits were stumbling over their feet in exhaustion. They made a little camp, but they didn't dare start a fire. The Hobbits had a cold supper and went to sleep. They had a double watch. Aragorn and Ricky took the first watch.

Aragorn noticed Ricky's right arm hanging awkwardly at his side. "Are you injured?"

"Just a bruise," Ricky muttered.

"Let me see."

Ricky took his shirts off, leaving on the tight Under Armour and a loose undershirt over top of it. There was no blood and the cloth was completely intact. Aragorn ran his hands over Ricky's too thin arm.

"You must eat more," Aragorn said.

"I've always been small," Ricky told him.

"You should have told me you were hurt," Aragorn continued.

"I thought I screamed."

Aragorn looked up from Ricky's arm.

"Yeah, I know," Ricky said, rolling his eyes. "I scream like a girl. My balls haven't dropped yet; whadiya expect?"

Aragorn placed one hand on Ricky's shoulder and gave the arm a tug. There was a pop and Ricky let out a sigh of relief.

"Thanks."

"Try to keep it still," said Aragorn. "I will make a sling for it."

"It's my right arm," Ricky said. "I can keep it still when I need to."

"Avoid using it," Aragorn ordered. "It soon should be time to change watch."

Ricky perked up and started searching his pockets. "What did I do with it? I thought I had it. Here it is!" In his hand was a gold pocket watch. "Found it when I was checking through my first aid kit a couple nights ago. I thought I pawned it ages ago."

He popped it open and checked the time. "Only been about an hour."

Aragorn looked at Ricky pocket watch. "That is a very useful device. Horology is a rare and expensive craft. Few own such pieces of work."

"I know you don't like hearin' this, but I stole this." Ricky gave a half grin to Aragorn and shrugged his good shoulder. "Picked it off some stock broker. Heard him braggin' about it to his coworkers. When he wasn't lookin', I picked it right out of his pocket. It was so easy. People don't watch what is around them, even if they think they do. You get a whole new level of awareness when you have to search for food and a safe place to sleep."

"It must have been difficult," Aragorn said.

Ricky gave a small shake of his head. "Once you know what to look for, you're somewhat safe for the most part. Things could have turned out much worse for me. I keep tellin' myself I could be workin' for a drug dealer."

"Where will you go when this is over?" asked Aragorn.

"I never thought about it," replied Ricky. "Honestly, I don't see myself getting out of this alive."

"You can always stay in Rivendell," Aragorn offered.

"The Elves are leavin', remember?" Ricky pointed out.

"There are many places to stay," Aragorn continued. "I have traveled all over Middle Earth. You could stay in Gondor. It is a very large city, something you are used to. There is Rohan, the home of the horse lords. Gimli could take you to Erebor to see the Dwarves. And the Hobbits like you. I am certain you would receive an invitation to visit them in the Shire."

Ricky hummed. "Still be wanderin' around, but instead of New York, it'd be Middle Earth. I can live with that."

"Do you like wandering?"

"Eh, I'm used to findin' the same landmarks and stuff. It would be nice to know that somethin's waitin' for you. But I can live without it. At least now I don't have to worry about a bullet in the back. And I've better chances learnin' a trade here than back in New York." Ricky became silent. "I can actually have a life here," he whispered in amazement.

"What would you like to do?" Aragorn asked.

Ricky was silent again and dropped his head. "I don't know. I'm not really good at anythin' useful."

"You would make a fine groom," Aragorn suggested.

Ricky frowned in confusion. "Huh?"

"A stablehand," Aragorn clarified. "The horses in Rivendell seemed to like you enough."

"They tolerated me, like everyone else does. And I know nothin' about horses."

"You are a quick study. I watched you learn how to handle a bow in a week."

"I'm not that good."

"Ricky, you are smarter than you believe yourself to be. You have talent. You can learn anything if you apply yourself."

The corner of Ricky's mouth twitched. "I like animals. I guess I could do that. It'd be a lot of work. I never rode before. We don't use horses like you guys use."

"Then what do you use for travel?"

Ricky knew he couldn't properly explain cars and planes. "We use machines."

"Your world sounds very different from ours."

"Very." Ricky looked down at his pocket watch. "Our watch is almost over. Who has the next one?"

"Gimli and Boromir. Gandalf and Legolas will finish and then we will move on."

Ten minutes later, they woke their relief and went to bed themselves.

It was during his sleep that Ricky remembered.

* * *

He was walking back to the alley behind the Chinese restaurant where he was staying. One of the employees took pity on Ricky and would save some leftovers that would have been throw out in the garbage and keep them hot in a bowl for him.

He was two blocks from the restaurant when he heard a little girl screaming.

"Shut up!" a man snapped.

Ricky stopped and turned back around. The screaming was coming from the alley that he had just passed. He ran back and saw two men trying to force a girl into the back of a car.

Ricky dashed forward and punched out the man holding the girl. He dropped like a stone. The little girl screamed and ran.

"What da fuck?" the other man shouted. He was young, a few years older than Ricky with blonde hair and buck teeth. He smiled. "Where da hell did you come from?"

Ricky said nothing and attacked the blonde. The blonde hopped back, avoiding Ricky's attack completely. He hopped on his toes with a silly grin.

"Wuzdamatta?" he mocked. "You suck!" He laughed.

Ricky lunged for the blonde and was drop kicked in the stomach. They both ended up on the pavement. Ricky sat up and was kicked in the stomach again. He sat up again and was kicked again. This happened three more times before the blonde got to his feet.

"Sorry, man," the blonde laughed. "You're gonna have to do better than that to beat Jack Rabbit."

Ricky sat up, coiled his legs up in front of him, and launched himself at Jack Rabbit using his hands to push off. He kicked out, hitting Jack Rabbit in the knee. Jack Rabbit's leg gave out and he dropped to his injured knee.

"Screw you!"

Ricky was caught off guard when Jack Rabbit used his good leg to kick Ricky in the back of the knee. Ricky yelled and collapsed. He grabbed his injured leg.

Jack Rabbit got to his feet, trying not to put weight on his own injured leg. "How do you like it, bitch?" he crowed with a laugh. "You think you can actually out kick me? Dude, I'm a rabbit. You can't keep up with that."

As Jack Rabbit gloated, Ricky reached into his pocket and flicked open his straight razor. He pushed himself up and slashed Jack Rabbit's face. Jack Rabbit staggered back, swearing horribly.

Jack Rabbit went for Ricky. Ricky ducked and Jack Rabbit ended up jumping over him. Jack Rabbit turned around and grabbed Ricky. Ricky twisted out of the grip and slammed his elbow into Jack Rabbit's shoulder. Jack Rabbit grabbed his arm again and Ricky twisted out of it again and punched him in the back.

Jack Rabbit turned around, but Ricky wasn't where he thought he was. Ricky appeared on the other side of Jack Rabbit and kicked him in the stomach.

Jack Rabbit gasped, doubling over. "What are you – a magician? Houdini wannabe. Yo' good. But not good enough!"

Jack Rabbit kicked Ricky in the stomach again. Unable to maintain his balance, Ricky tumbled back. There was a broken board from a wood pallet at the side of the alley. Ricky picked it up and cracked Jack Rabbit in the head with it. Jack Rabbit fell like a stone.

"Shut da hell up," muttered Ricky. He rubbed his injured leg. He tried to stand up and put his weight on it, but he couldn't even straighten it properly. "Dammit. Dat's not good."

Something fell in the alley.

"Come out, kid, I know yo' dere," Ricky called.

The little girl came out of hiding. She looked down at the two men. "Are they dead?"

"Nah, just knocked out. Let's get you home."

Ricky took the little girl's hand and took her to the first police cruiser he found. They must have been getting coffee because no one was there. He told her to wait at the car while he crossed the street. He watched and waited for the cops to find her and then left. He limped back to the sewers instead of going back to the restaurant.

He mulled over the name Houdini. Houdini, the great illusionist and escape artist. Ricky was a bit proud to be compared to the great man. Through his pained grimace, he smiled.

* * *

Ricky woke up. He looked over at who was on watch and saw it was Gandalf and Legolas. They had a small fire going, probably for a little heat and to have a hot breakfast. Gandalf's staff was glowing faintly, not enough to put off a decent amount of light, but enough that it was a small beacon.

Ricky learned something in that moment. As he looked over at Legolas, he noticed the Elf was glowing. He always thought it was a trick of the light, but he was in fact glowing. There was no denying Elves had an ethereal beauty. He also appeared nervous to Ricky, like he wanted to be anywhere but here. Ricky remembered what Legolas said about how precious light is to Elves.

Legolas turned to the camp site when he heard someone moving around. It was Ricky. The boy walked over to him.

"Here." Ricky held up his flashlight. "You pull the handle out, crank it for about a minute, push the handle back in and turn it on." Ricky acted out the steps, pulling a small handle out of the back of the cylindrical device and cranking it up for a few seconds. He pushed the handle back into the cylinder and flipped the switch. He aimed the beam at the ground for a split second and turned it back off. Ricky handed the flashlight to Legolas. "I know you don't like the dark. At least now you have the choice to turn on a light."

Legolas took the flashlight and stared at it. He looked back up at Ricky. "But this is yours. This is the only device of its kind. Why are you giving it to me?"

"If you don't wanna keep it, think of it as a loan," said Ricky. "You can give it back when we get out of here. Besides, I'm used to bein' in the dark. It doesn't bother me."

Ricky went back to his bedroll.

Gandalf smiled softly around his pipe.

Boromir was awake and watched Ricky return to his bedroll. This boy was a puzzle.

* * *

They packed up after a quick warm breakfast and moved on. Again they said very little and everything was said in hushed tones. Ricky was completely fine with being in the Mines along with Gimli. The others wished for sunlight. More than once Ricky noticed Legolas fingering the pocket he had tucked the flashlight in. He also felt Boromir drilling holes into his back.

Aragorn often asked Ricky how long they had been travelling. Gimli had a good sense of time for being underground, but Ricky had the pocket watch to give an exact time. They stopped for another night.

Ricky was put on first watch again, however he was sharing it with Boromir. They didn't look at each other as they sat on watch. Ricky was aware of someone having a nightmare; Frodo.

Ricky got up and sat next to Frodo. He began to hum, stroking Frodo's curls. Frodo settled down and Ricky went back to his seat. He could feel Boromir watching him.

"Okay, Pretty Boy," Ricky finally said. "You've been watchin' me since we got up this mornin'. What is it?"

"I do not understand you," Boromir said. "Have I done something to offend you that you hate me? Or is it you have feelings for the Hobbits and the Elf?"

"I thought you didn't like me," Ricky said. "Honestly, it's not that I don't like you. I don't like your attitude. You sound like you're above everybody and they're less important than you. You showed that in Rivendell when you wanted to use the Ring. You showed that when you called me a child and that I knew nothin'. Yeah, I don't know much about this world, but I do know what power does to people. I also know what pride does. And if we want a chance to defeat Sauron, you're gonna have to swallow that pride of yours, 'cause the Ring is bankin' on usin' that against you. And it's gonna get someone killed."

"You are right."

Ricky wasn't expecting Boromir to admit it.

"I am the son of the Steward of Gondor. Certain things are expected of me."

"Like being a complete dick?" Ricky quipped.

"My father expects much from me," Boromir continued, wincing slightly at Ricky's comment. "He is a proud man. He loves Gondor and wishes for her to be safe. As do I. He wants the Ring so he is able to defeat Mordor."

"At what price?" Ricky asked. "Gandalf said there is only one thing the Ring will submit to and that's Sauron. Your father would be doomin' everybody."

Ricky stood up and walked to the shadows.

"Where are you going?" Boromir demanded.

"I gotta take a piss," answered Ricky.

"Stay in sight," Boromir called after him.

Ricky looked over his shoulder. "I never pissed in front of you before. Why should I start now?"

Boromir said nothing more. Throughout the entire journey, Ricky always ran to the bushes out of sight of the others to relieve himself or change his clothes. The rest of them used a nearby tree while someone could still see their head or were within speaking distance. They told him if it was a matter of being ashamed for being underdeveloped, they did not care. Ricky said it had to do with how he grew up. He didn't want to be caught with his pants down in front of anybody and if he was in danger, he could yell.

With a shake of his head, Boromir thought about how much of a puzzle the boy could be. He spoke his mind and had quite the mouth on him, but he never spoke much about his life, only giving the minimal details when asked. He was ready to fight at a drop of a boot, yet would run when things did not go his way. His boldness could be taken as cruelty, but he had soothed Frodo and given comfort to Legolas in the form of his light making device.

The boy was a contradiction, but there appeared to be an innate power about him. Boromir wondered if Ricky could truly contribute something to the journey and not something that appeared to be coincidence or luck.

* * *

Ricky woke up to someone shaking his shoulder. "What?" He looked over at Gandalf. "What?"

"I have a special job for you," Gandalf told him.

"Couldn't've waited?" Ricky grumbled. He sat up. "What?"

"I believe there is something following us," Gandalf told him.

"Which way?" Ricky asked.

Gandalf glanced back at the way they came.

Ricky got up. "Give me twenty minutes."

Ricky disappeared into the darkness. He made a loop around the camp and climbed behind several rocks and down part of a shaft. He noticed something crawling around behind them. He wasn't sure what he was looking at, but it wasn't human. Then again, anything attacking them that was human was the least of their worries.

Ricky reported back to Gandalf.

"Thank you, Ricky," Gandalf said when Ricky finished telling him what he saw in the shaft. "We have little to worry about from that creature at the moment."

Ricky nodded and went back to his bedroll. He looked around and saw everyone else sleeping. "Thought Gimli was supposed to be keepin' watch with you."

"But you kept watch with me," Gandalf said innocently. "Go back to sleep, Master Weiss. I apologize for waking you so early."

Ricky grunted and went back to sleep for another hour.

* * *

Their path took them up a flight of steep stairs. There were skeletons littering the area and graffiti on the broken walls.

Ricky frowned. "What is this place?"

"A Dwarf cemetery," Gimli replied quietly.

Ricky took another look at the Dwarf skeletons. "Damn goblins."

At the top of the stairs was a small landing with three doorways. Gandalf stopped and looked at the doorways for several moments. "I have no memory of this place."

They got a fire going to keep warm and have some light on the landing. Gandalf sat on a fallen rock, looking at the doorways.

"Are we lost?" Pippin quietly asked Merry.

"No. I don't think we are. Shhh, Gandalf's thinking."

"Merry."

"What?"

"I'm hungry."

Ricky rolled his eyes. He glanced up from his seat on the landing to see Frodo standing above him and looking at the tunnel below them. Ricky had heard the sound of whatever was following them, but wasn't sure if anyone else did. Apparently Frodo had. The Hobbit quickly turned around and went to Gandalf.

"There's something down there," he whispered urgently to Gandalf.

"It's Gollum," Gandalf quietly said, not turning to face him.

"Gollum?" Frodo repeated.

Ricky tilted his head back so he was able to hear their conversation.

"He's been following us for three days," Gandalf continued.

"He escaped the dungeons of Barad-dûr?" Frodo asked disbelievingly.

"Escaped." Gandalf turned to face Frodo. "Or was set loose. And now the Ring has drawn him here. He will never be rid of his need for it. He hates and loves the Ring, as he hates and loves himself. Sméagol's life is a sad story."

Frodo must have looked bewildered because what Ricky heard next was, "Yes, Sméagol he was once called before the Ring came to him, before it drove him mad."

"It's a pity Bilbo didn't kill him when he had the chance," Frodo said grimly.

"Pity? It was pity that stayed Bilbo's hand," said Gandalf. "Many that live deserve death, and some that die deserve life. Can you give it to them, Frodo? Do not be too eager to deal out death in judgment. Even the very wise cannot see all ends. My heart tells me that Gollum has some part to play yet, for good or ill before this is over. The pity of Bilbo may rule the fate of many."

"I wish the Ring had never come to me," Frodo said. "I wish none of this had happened."

"So do all who live to see such times," said Gandalf. "But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us."

Ricky's mouth twitched slightly at Gandalf's words.

"There are other forces at work in this world, Frodo, besides the will of evil. Bilbo was meant to find the Ring. In which case, you also were meant to have it, and that is an encouraging thought."

Ricky gave a small nod of his head.

"Ah!" Gandalf exclaimed brightly. "It's that way."

"He's remembered!" Merry said, jumping up.

"No," replied Gandalf. "But the air doesn't smell so foul down here. If in doubt, Meridoc, follow your nose." He gave a small laugh.

Everyone quickly gathered their things. Aragorn made a torch for some extra light before dousing the small fire.

They walked through the passage and through an arched doorway.

"Let me risk a little more light," Gandalf said. He tapped his staff and the cavern lit up. "Behold! The great realm and Dwarf-city of Dwarrowdelf."

Massive columns rose into the air to support a ceiling that was in shadow.

"Well, there's an eye opener and no mistake," said Sam.

The place was massive. Ricky had seen apartment buildings that could fit in here and have no chance at touching the ceiling.

Gandalf began leading them again. They didn't get too far before Gimli suddenly let out a cry and ran to a chamber off to the side. The doors of the chamber were open and had black arrows embedded in them. Skeletons were scattered in front of the doorway, but none of them appeared to be Dwarves.

"Gimli!" Gandalf called after him.

They followed him in to see a mostly empty chamber. There were more skeletons littering the floor, several of them Dwarfish. In the far corner was a stone walled well with a skeleton sitting on it.

Gimli was kneeling in front of what appeared to be a low stone table with a white slab on top. An opening in the ceiling allowed a shaft of sunlight to illuminate the room and the sunlight was directly on the stone slab.

Gandalf came up behind Gimli. "'Here lies Balin, son of Fundin, Lord of Moria,'" he read. "He is dead, then. It's as I feared."

Gimli sobbing quieted a little. "Kilmin malur ni zaram kalil ra narag. Kheled-zâram . . . Balin tazlifi."

Gandalf looked down and saw one of the skeletons against the tomb. The skeleton was holding a thick book in his hands. Gandalf removed his hat and handed it and his staff to Pippin. He moved the skeleton's hands aside and picked up the book.

Ricky took a place beside Gimli. He noticed Gandalf fiddling with the skeleton. "Really, Gandalf?" he muttered.

Legolas turned to Aragorn. "We must move on. We cannot linger," he whispered urgently.

Gandalf opened the book and blew the dust off the pages. "'They have taken the Bridge and the second hall: we have barred the gates, but cannot hold them for long.'"

Ricky couldn't help but think that it sounded like some dark poetry.

"The ground shakes. Drums, drums in the deep. We cannot get out. A shadow moves in the dark. We cannot get out. They are coming.'"

There was a loud crash.

Everyone turned in the direction of the sound. They had been focused on Gandalf and no one had noticed Pippin backing up, unnerved by what Gandalf was reading. Pippin had bumped the skeleton sitting on the edge of the well. The head fell off. Pippin winced. The rest of the skeleton followed along with the long chain and the bucket attached.

Ricky dashed forward to try to save one more thing from falling down the deep well. He just missed grabbing the bucket.

They stood in stunned silence as the armor clattered down the well. The echoes were loud! It was impossible for anything else in the mines not to hear it.

Finally everything came to a stop. Several let out sighs of relief when they heard nothing afterwards.

Gandalf slammed the book shut angrily. "Fool of a Took! Throw yourself in next time and rid us of your stupidity!" He snatched his staff and hat away.

Pippin looked down at his feet.

Boom!

They turned back to the well.

There were more drumbeats and they were answered around Moria. Screeches were added to the drums along with the sound of many running feet.

The Fellowship turned to the doors.

Sam turned to Frodo, glancing down at his belt. "Mr. Frodo!" He pointed to Frodo's scabbard.

Frodo pulled his sword out. The blade was glowing a cold blue.

A high pitched ululating echoed throughout the halls.

"Orcs!" Legolas said darkly.

Aragorn whirled around to the Hobbits. "Get back! Stay close to Gandalf!" He threw the torch he had been carrying down and began helping Boromir to barricade the doors.

Boromir was almost shot in the face by two black arrows. A loud roar echoed over all the other sounds.

"They have a cave troll," Boromir announced drily, closing the doors.

They used rusty war axes to bar the doors.

Gimli jumped up on Balin's tomb. "Let them come!" he yelled. "There is one Dwarf yet in Moria who still draws breath!"

Legolas and Aragorn stood at the front with their bows, while Boromir stood at their side with his sword and shield. Gandalf had thrown down his hat and drawn his sword. The Hobbits mimicked him.

Ricky was at the back of the chamber, a dagger in his right hand. He was digging through rubble and skeletons for something. His face lit up when he found a length of heavy chain, similar to the one that had been attached to the bucket and Dwarf skeleton. He wrapped part of it around his left hand and let it hang down. He gave his arm a few experimental swings and found it was perfect for what he wanted it for.

The Orcs began breaking through the doors. Aragorn and Legolas shot them through the holes they made. The doors only held for a few more moments before the Orcs burst in and swarmed the chamber.

The whole Fellowship was forced to fight. Swords, axes, and knives cut through armor and flesh. The Hobbits were kept back from most of the fighting, Gandalf acting as a buffer for the brunt of the Orcs' assault. Aragorn, Legolas, and Boromir were at the front of the chamber while Gimli was on top of Balin's tomb to gain some extra height. Ricky was at the back, but was slowly making his way to the front of the chamber.

Compared to the other members of the Fellowship, Ricky's fighting style was unorthodox. The boy was using what he had at his disposal to win. With the length of chain in his left hand, he beat down his opponents, aiming for the head and knees. Once they were down, he used the dagger in his right hand to slit their throats. It was a deadly dance: cut left, cut right, swing chain, cut left, swing chain right, cut right, spin away from their blades.

Ricky looked over his shoulder and saw Frodo almost back to back with him. An Orc was slashing wildly at the little Hobbit. Ricky whirled around, letting out a few extra inches of chain. The chain whipped over Frodo's head and struck the Orc in the face. Frodo took the opportunity to run the Orc through.

There was another loud roar. An Orc led in a massive, misshapen creature by a chain. Ricky guessed that was the troll Boromir was referring to. In the troll's hand was mace and it began to beat away at anything it moved.

Legolas took a shot at it.

Ricky saw the shot out of his peripheral vision. "Aim for the eyes," he said, stabbing his dagger into the eye of the Orc he was fighting. The rest of the Fellowship was concerning themselves with the troll. Ricky focused on the Orcs. Twice the troll took a swing at him, but Ricky dropped to the floor and got back up to avoid it and kept fighting whatever Orcs were still on their feet. Ricky was aware the tomb had been destroyed and Boromir had to pick himself off the floor. Aragorn was also missing his sword.

Legolas had made his way up on the narrow ledges around the room and was taking down the Orcs from there. The troll used the chain around his neck as a whip much like Ricky was doing. Legolas ducked and the chain got wrapped around a pillar. He jumped onto the troll's shoulders and shot it in the head. This only enraged the troll more. The chain snapped and Legolas jumped down to avoid being thrown off the troll's shoulders.

Ricky punched an Orc in the face with his chain covered knuckles. He finished it with a stab to the throat. He looked around and noticed the Orc ranks were thinning out. Ricky threw the chain at an Orc and hit it in the face. He pulled his other dagger and continued slashing.

"Aragorn! Aragorn!" Frodo was screaming.

Ricky turned around and saw the troll had grabbed Frodo.

"Frodo!" Aragorn ran to Frodo's aid.

Frodo slashed the troll's hand and the troll dropped him.

Aragorn came in with a yell and stuck a spear in the troll's stomach. Merry and Pippin were up on the second level. They started throwing rocks at the troll's head. The troll became annoyed and swept his arm across the ground. Aragorn was thrown against the wall and fell unconscious.

Frodo ran to Aragorn's side and tried to shake him awake.

The troll pulled the spear out of its stomach and stabbed at Frodo. Frodo ducked out of the way. He tried to run, but the troll blocked his path and shoved him back into an alcove. The troll stabbed Frodo in the stomach with the spear.

Gandalf whirled around at Frodo's cry.

Merry and Pippin stood there in shock for a split second. With twin battle cries, they jumped onto the troll's head and started stabbing.

"Frodo!" Sam yelled.

A scream of rage and anguish echoed around the chamber and Ricky nearly decapitated an Orc with just his dagger.

Everyone finished off whatever Orcs there were and turned their attention to the troll.

Frodo collapsed to the floor.

The troll grabbed Merry and began to shake him.

Gimli came in with two battle axes and slashed at the troll's legs. Gandalf joined him. The troll dropped Merry. Legolas readied his bow. Pippin made one more stab and the troll threw back his head in a roar of pain. Legolas fired an arrow right in the troll's throat.

The troll moaned and wobbled on its feet. It fell forward and threw Pippin to the floor. Pippin was grabbed by the scruff of the neck and pulled away from the dead troll. He looked up and saw Ricky still had his dagger up to defend himself, looking around the area, mostly concentrating on the troll.

Aragorn got up and crawled over to Frodo. "Oh, no," he breathed. He turned Frodo over.

Frodo let out a gasp and coughed.

Sam ran to his side. "He's alive."

Everyone let out a sigh of relief.

Frodo sat up and looked at Aragorn. "I'm all right. I'm not hurt."

"You should be dead," Aragorn said in disbelief. "That spear would have skewered a wild boar."

"I think there's more to this Hobbit than meets the eye," said Gandalf.

Frodo unbuttoned his shirt to reveal a shimmering white shirt of metal rings.

"Mithril," breathed Gimli. "You are full of surprises, Master Baggins."

They heard the drums again, heard the Orcs, and saw the shadows they cast on the wall.

"To the Bridge of Khazad-dûm," Gandalf ordered.

They ran back into the great chamber.

"This way!" Gandalf called to them.

Ricky looked behind them and saw the Orcs. They were literally crawling out of the stonework.

They were almost at the other end of the massive chamber when the Orcs surrounded them. Ricky got a good look at the Orcs, not having done so while they were fighting them the first time. They were ugly beyond words.

There was a loud boom that shook the Mines. The Orcs looked up and around, chattering fearfully. At the opposite end of the chamber was an orange light, like something was on fire. A second boom sent all the Orcs scattering into hiding. Ricky thought of it like cockroaches hiding from the light.

Gimli let out a laugh at the fleeing Orcs.

The light got brighter and there was a loud, low growl.

"What is this new devilry?" Boromir asked.

Gandalf gripped his staff and closed his eyes.

Ricky took a shaky breath. "One t'ing I learned, Pretty Boy, if da rats a' scatterin', you get da hell out."

There was another low growl, this one much louder than the previous one. Whatever was making it was getting closer.

"A Balrog," Gandalf answered quietly. "A demon of the ancient world. This foe is beyond any of you."

"Shit," breathed Ricky.

"Run!" yelled Gandalf.

They started running again. As they did, they heard the Balrog chasing after them.

They ran out of the massive chamber and came to a broken stairway. Boromir almost fell down into the deep glowing fires below, but Ricky grabbed the back of his shirt and pulled him away from the edge. Ricky saw how far down the fall was and wondered how deep they were that they could see the earth's fire.

Ricky turned around to see Gandalf leaning against the wall, Aragorn at his side.

"Gandalf," said Aragorn, supporting the Istar.

"Lead them on, Aragorn," said Gandalf. "The bridge is near."

Aragorn hesitated.

Gandalf gave him a push. "Do as I say! Swords are no more use here."

There was a second stairway that started at the cavern's side. They took that stairway and made their way down.

Farther down, there was a large chunk of the stairway missing. The others slowed down to make the jump. However, Ricky got ahead of Boromir, who was in the lead.

"Ricky!" they yelled.

Ricky jumped the gap and twisted midair. He flopped down on his stomach on the other side. He got to his feet ignoring the pain in his knees where he scraped them.

Legolas jumped over and joined him. "Gandalf!" He waved to the wizard.

Gandalf jumped the gap.

An arrow bounced off the stairs.

The Orcs had decided to take up trying to kill them from a safe distance. Legolas and Aragorn took out their bows again and returned fire.

Boromir picked up Pippin and Merry and jumped across. The stairs they were standing on crumbled away.

"Sam!" Aragorn called. He picked up the Hobbit and threw him to Boromir. Aragorn turned to Gimli.

Gimli put his hand up. "Nobody tosses a Dwarf."

Gimli jumped over, but came up short. Legolas reached out and grabbed Gimli at the only place he could.

"Not the beard!" yelled Gimli.

More of the stairs crumbled, forcing Aragorn and Frodo back up the stairs.

The rest of the Fellowship could see the Balrog coming to the doorway they came from. The Balrog roared and the Mines shook again. Sections of the ceiling broke away, one large piece destroying the stairs behind Aragorn and Frodo, leaving them stranded. Aragorn grabbed Frodo as the stairs under their feet began to crack and sway.

"Hang on!" Aragorn yelled. "Lean forward!"

The stairs swayed forward and crashed into the stairway holding the Fellowship. Legolas caught Aragorn and Boromir caught Frodo. They were running again before the damaged stairway collapsed.

At the bottom of the stairway, they were greeted by another large chamber that glowed with the fires of the Mines.

"Over the bridge!" yelled Gandalf, stopping for the others to get ahead of him. "Fly!"

There was the loudest roar yet and everyone turned around. Rising from the flames was a gigantic shadow. Ricky's first thought went to gargoyle. It was a flaming gargoyle the size of five story building. It had large bat wings and ram horns.

The bridge was now in front of them. All it was was a narrow stone arch over a chasm. It was so narrow they had to cross it in single file.

Everyone got across, except Gandalf. He stood in the middle of the bridge and faced the Balrog.

"You cannot pass!" yelled Gandalf.

"Gandalf!" cried Frodo.

The Balrog stood up to its full height, setting itself on fire.

"I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the flame of Anor." Gandalf raised his glowing staff, surrounding himself with a white shield. "The dark fire will not avail you, flame of Udûn."

The Balrog brought down a flaming sword on Gandalf's shield. The shield held, but crumbled after the attack. The Balrog snarled at Gandalf.

Aragorn took a step forward as if to help Gandalf.

Ricky grabbed him. "He's on his own."

Aragorn knew Ricky was right.

"Go back to the Shadow!" Gandalf told the Balrog.

The Balrog stepped out on to the bridge. Its next weapon was a fire whip with many thongs.

"YOU SHALL NOT PASS!" Gandalf slammed his staff on the ground.

The Balrog ran out on the bridge. The half of the bridge the Balrog was on crumbled beneath its feet and it fell into the chasm.

Gandalf let out a sigh of exhaustion and turned away. As he did, the Balrog's whip snapped up and wrapped around Gandalf's leg. It pulled him over the bridge. Gandalf manage to catch the edge to stop his fall.

Frodo ran forward and was caught by Boromir. "Gandalf!"

Gandalf tried to pull himself up. He looked at Frodo's horrified face. "Fly, you fools!" Then he was gone.

"NO!" yelled Frodo.

Boromir picked up Frodo and started to run for the exit.

Aragorn stared in horror at where Gandalf had been.

"Aragorn!" Boromir yelled.

Ricky pulled on Aragorn's arm.

The Orcs had caught up with them and were now shooting at them again. Aragorn and Ricky were ducking arrows as they brought up the rear.

Daylight was shining through a large doorway. The Fellowship ran out and were greeted with the sun and clear skies. They only went about fifty yards before they stopped.

Boromir had to hold Gimli back from running back in for Gandalf. Merry was sitting with Pippin, who was lying down in his lap, sobbing. Sam crumpled to the ground and cried. Legolas looked heartbroken.

Aragorn wiped his sword off with a rag. "Legolas, get them up."

Legolas mechanically went over to Merry and Pippin.

"Give them a moment, for pity's sake!" cried Boromir.

"By nightfall these hills will be swarming with Orcs," Aragorn told them. "We must reach the woods of Lothlórien." He sheathed his sword. "Come, Boromir, Legolas, Gimli, get them up." Aragorn walked over to Sam and pulled him up. "On your feet, Sam. Frodo?"

Frodo was slowly walking away from the group.

"Frodo!" Aragorn yelled.

Frodo sluggishly turned around to look at them. The expression on his face was one of numbed shock and he had a look of hopelessness in his eyes.

"Like hell!" hissed a voice.

Aragorn watched Ricky race passed him and over to Frodo. The boy knelt down in front of the Hobbit with his hands on his shoulders. Aragorn didn't know what Ricky said, but a second later Ricky was shrugging his pack off and putting Frodo on his back. He then hung his pack off his front to be balanced.

Ricky briskly walked back to the Fellowship. He locked eyes with Aragorn. "Let's go."

* * *

 **He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you. – Friedrich Nietzsche (Was also used in the previous chapter)**

* * *

 **So I was going through my legacy stats and noticed that _Quote the Pauper Forevermore_ is now part of a community! Yay! That's my first story to be part of a community. Thank you for whoever nominated my story to be added to it. It's now part of the Maidens and Mayhem in Middle-Earth community founded by TrollingTauriel!**


	6. Into the Light

**Well, here it is, Chapter 6. I wanted to get this up last month, but the more I went over it, the more I found problems with it and the more I had to rewrite. I am still not one hundred percent happy with the end result, but this is as close as I can get it without getting wordier than it already is. Not a lot of action in this chapter, but Ricky does meet Galadriel.**

* * *

It took them the rest of the day to get to the edge of the wood. The trees were full of golden leaves even though it was the middle of winter. The trunks were silver and reached high into the air.

Legolas looked up at the trees. "Ah, Lothlórien. The fairest of all the dwellings of my people. There are no trees like the trees of this land, for in autumn the leaves fall not, but turn to gold. Not till the spring comes and the new green opens do they fall, and then the boughs are laden with yellow flowers; and the floor of the wood is golden, and golden is the roof, and its pillars are of silver, for the bark of the trees is smooth and grey. So still our songs in Mirkwood say."

Gimli was holding his axe and looking around nervously. "Stay close, young Hobbits. They say a great sorceress lives in these woods. An Elf-witch of terrible power. All who look upon her fall under her spell and are never seen again."

Ricky had long since stopped carrying Frodo, but was usually near him. He rolled his eyes at Gimli's story and cracked his hand across the back of Gimli's helmet. "Stop scarin' them. Been through enough today, don't you think?"

"Mr. Frodo?"

Ricky looked back and saw Frodo had stopped and had a scared look on his face.

"Well, here's one Dwarf she won't ensnare so easily," Gimli went on, glancing over his shoulder. "I have the eyes of a hawk and the ears of a fox!"

When he turned back around, there were two arrows pointed at his face.

The Lothlórien Elves appeared and pointed their arrows inches away from the Fellowship's head.

Ricky twitched his hands. "You were sayin', Gimli?"

"The Dwarf breathes so loud we could have shot him in the dark," said the only Elf that didn't have an arrow trained on them.

Gimli growled.

"Ain't sayin' much, considerin' yo' Elves," Ricky snapped. "Betcha yo' eyesight's da same as mine in da dark."

* * *

It was dusk when the Elves led Fellowship to a group of trees with platforms built high in the branches. No one spoke during that time. Already on the platforms were several Elves keeping watch of the ground below. It was only when the Fellowship had climbed up on one of the platforms did the silence break.

The Elf who spoke earlier turned to Legolas with a hand motion. "Mae govannen, Legolas Thranduilion."

"Govannas vîn gwennen le, Haldir o Lórien," replied Legolas.

The Elf turned to Aragorn. "A, Aragorn in Dúnedain, istannen le ammen." He made the same gesture to Aragorn.

"Haldir," greeted Aragorn, returning the gesture.

"So much for the legendary courtesy of the Elves!" snapped Gimli. "Speak words we can also understand!"

The Elf, Ricky guessed his name was Haldir, turned to Gimli. "We have not had dealings with Dwarves since the Dark Days," he said calmly.

"And you know what this Dwarf says to that? Ishkhaqwi ai durugnul!"

Aragorn whipped around and grabbed Gimli's arm. "That was not so courteous," he said sternly.

"Quit bein' an asshole."

They turned to Ricky. The boy had sat down and taken a small bottle of strong smelling liquid from his pack and was wetting a gauze pad with it. His tinted goggles were up on his brow while the clear ones were on his face.

"Which one of us are you speaking to, lad?" Gimli barked.

Ricky looked at Gimli and then at Haldir. "Both of you."

The Fellowship stared at Ricky. Haldir raised an eyebrow at him.

Ricky paid no attention to this as he rolled up his trousers and wiped at his scrapes with the gauze. "Shouldn't matter dat Dwarves and Elves hadn't had dealin's since da Dark Days. Dat was den, dis is now, so deal!" He hissed as he held the gauze pad on a particular nasty scratch. "Now I remember sayin' somethin' 'bout bein' screwed and findin' shovels. Gotta remind you of dat, Gimli? S'not like we have a choice about dis."

Gimli lowered his head, somewhat ashamed of being chastised by a boy a fraction of his age.

"And get dat smirk off yo' face, Elf," Ricky added, looking up at Haldir. "I ain't even started wit' you."

"Ricky," Aragorn said warningly.

Ricky turned to Aragorn. "Don't even. I'm beyond pissed as it is. I'm done wit' dis petty bullshit between Elves and Dwarves. We got mo' important t'ings to deal wit'."

He returned his attention to Haldir.

"You are young and do not understand," Haldir said.

"Don't start wit' dat condescendin' shit," Ricky growled. "I'm done wit' it. When you stop actin' like children, maybe I'll actually listen."

Haldir turned away from Ricky and to Frodo. "You carry great evil with you." He turned back to Aragorn. "You can go no further." With that, Haldir walked away.

* * *

The Fellowship sat down while Aragorn spoke to Haldir. Ricky kept his ear open for anything he could use. They were speaking Elvish and Ricky knew nothing about the language.

Boromir looked over at Frodo. "Gandalf's death was not in vain. Nor would he have you give up hope. You carry a heavy burden, Frodo. Don't carry the weight of the dead."

"That's what Ricky told me," Frodo said quietly. "Well, not in so many words."

Haldir stood before Frodo. "Very well. Here we will stay awhile, and come to the city of Galadhrim on the morrow."

Aragorn came to sit beside Ricky. The boy was half asleep against the trunk of the tree.

"How are your wounds?"

"Scrapes and bruises," replied Ricky. "Already taken care of."

Aragorn pushed up Ricky's trousers to look at his legs. They were chafed, scraped, and bruised. "You took a great risk when you jumped the stairway."

"I knew I could make it," Ricky said. "You forget, I grew up on the streets and in the tunnels. It's adapt or die. I adapted. You don't remember the glorified version of follow the leader I played with Legolas back in Rivendell, do you?"

"You were not in danger in Rivendell," Aragorn pointed out.

Ricky laughed. "One of the few times in my life."

Aragorn moved his examination to Ricky's hand. He pulled off the glove to look at the knuckles. Dried blood flaked off in his hands. The skin was practically purple. Aragorn went back to his pack and took out some bandages. He returned and began wrapping Ricky's hand.

"You must be careful while your hand heals," Aragorn told him softly. "What about your shoulder?"

Ricky gave a nod and took his hand away.

"Are you all right?" Aragorn asked.

"Yeah." Ricky's reply was toneless. "Sorry about the blow up at you."

Aragorn's grey eyes were soft. "You are upset."

"No shit, Sherlock." Ricky sat back against the tree. "How's Frodo?"

"The same as the rest of us. What did you say to him?"

"I told him he wasn't allowed to quit. Just because Gandalf's gone, doesn't mean this is over. It's all the more reason to finish."

"That is very true, Ricky," Aragorn whispered.

Ricky got up and moved over to where the Hobbits were curled up. Frodo had separated from the others. Ricky sat down next to him and pulled the sleeping Hobbit into his lap and began humming.

"Yay-yay-yay-yay-yay-ho, yo. Yay-yay-yay-yay-yay-ho, ho. Yay-yay-yay-yay-yay-ho, yo. Yay-yay-yay-yay-yay-ho, ho."

Boromir was close by and heard him. It was the same tune he hummed in Moria. But this time, there was a little something more.

The words were barely a whisper. Ricky's hand was in Frodo's curls. "Don't be scared now. Close your eyes. She holds guard tonight. Go forward, no remorse. Life will take its course."

Haldir stood near Legolas. " _He sings of our Lady._ "

" _Ricky knows little of Middle Earth,_ " Legolas told him. " _I do not believe he knows of Lady Galadriel._ "

" _Then who is he singing of?_ "

Both Elves watched as Ricky continued his song.

* * *

Frodo woke in Ricky's lap. The boy was still asleep. It was a very strange thing to look at him and see him without those goggles of his. Dirt smudged his face, but not around the eyes where pale skin was showing.

Frodo started to get up. Ricky jolted awake.

"I am only waking," Frodo said.

Ricky nodded and pushed Frodo to his feet.

Sam woke moments later and the two Hobbits sat on the edge of one of the platforms.

Sam suddenly looked up and around their surroundings.

"What is it?" Frodo asked.

"It's an odd thing, Mr. Frodo. It's sunlight and bright day, right enough. I thought that Elves were all for moon and stars. But this is more Elvish than anything I ever heard tell of. I feel as if I was inside a song, if you take my meaning."

"You feel the power of the Lady of Galadhrim." The two Hobbits turned to Haldir. "Would it please you to climb with me up Cerin Amroth?"

Frodo and Sam followed Haldir up the many platforms to the tops of the trees. At the top, the two Hobbits stared in wonder. They could see Middle Earth for miles to the north. A shadow lingered over a great forest.

"There lies the fastness of Southern Mirkwood," Haldir pointed out to them. "It is clad in a forest of dark fir, where the trees strive one against another and their branches rot and whither. In the midst upon a stony height stands Dol Guldur, where long the hidden Enemy had his dwelling. We fear that now it is inhabited again, and with power sevenfold. A black cloud lies often over it of late."

To the west, they could see the Orthanc and to the east was Mordor and Barad-dûr.

"In this high place you may see the two powers that are oppose one to another; and ever they strive now in thought, but whereas the light perceives the very heart of the darkness, its own secret has not been discovered. Not yet."

Haldir turned and went back down, Frodo and Sam following him a moment later.

The Hobbits went off on their own to finish packing up.

"Hey."

Haldir turned to see the strange boy with his tinted eye covering pulled over his eyes leaning against a tree. His arms were crossed in such a way he was supporting his right arm with his bandaged left hand.

"I'm not going apologize and I'm not making excuses, but you really got to get your priorities straight," said Ricky.

"What do you speak of?" Haldir asked.

"Last night was a repeat of what I saw in Rivendell. You talk a lot, but you don't act. You fight about what should be done and who should do it, but you spend so much time fighting amongst yourselves, you give your enemies time to attack you. In Rivendell, it was about who should take the Ring. Last night, it was about you Elves getting your hands dirty in all this."

"You know so little," Haldir said. "Things are not as simple as you believe they are."

"That's because you're making them harder than what they need to be," Ricky said. "Are you so wrapped up in your little utopia with your Lady of Light that you're blind to everything else?"

"Do not speak of our Lady so," Haldir said coldly, advancing on Ricky. "You know nothing of her and her power."

"I know that nobody's perfect," Ricky hissed back. "Not even her. Sauron's going to come a'knocking soon enough. What will you do then? Cower in the light? Or fight against the darkness?"

Haldir glared. "Mind your tongue, boy. Do not speak of things you know nothing about."

Ricky glared back, but said nothing else.

* * *

Haldir led the Fellowship and the other Elves through the forest. Once again, nothing was said as they were led to Caras Galadhon.

They stopped at the top of a hill.

"Caras Galadhon," Haldir announced.

The Fellowship looked in front of them. A few miles away was a large group of massive trees. They were gold like the trees surrounding, but rose above them like a golden mountain.

"The heart of Elvendom on earth. This is the city of Galadhrim where dwell the Lord Celeborn and Galadriel, Lady of Light."

* * *

It was dusk when they entered the city. It was built into the trees, staircases winding up and lanterns lighting the way. Thick trunks supported houses and platforms between their branches and bridges linked the trees so there was no need to climb down to get to another house.

"Legolas," Ricky said softly. "You told us about these trees. What do you call them?"

"Mallorn trees," replied Legolas.

Ricky looked up at the tops of the trees. "Nature's skyscrapers. Reminds me of New York."

"Truly?" asked Legolas. "I am glad you found something that reminds you of home."

Ricky's gaze turned from the Mallorn canopy to the path in front of him. "Yeah," he said flatly. "Home."

Haldir led them up the staircase that wrapped around the largest of the Mallorn trees. The stairs led up to a building with green and silver walls and a golden roof. The trunk of the Mallon tree it was built into continued to taper into the crown of the tree above them. They stopped on the platform at the top of the staircase. In front of them, two figures bathed in light descended the steps from the building.

The light faded to reveal a male Elf with a stern, ageless face and silver hair. He was dressed in grey robes with a white shirt. Beside him was a female Elf with long golden hair and beauty beyond compare. She was dressed completely in white with a silver circlet on her head. They all stood in awe of her.

Ricky had to admit these two Elves knew how to make an entrance. He glanced over at the others and noticed that they were bowing their heads. Ricky did the same.

Lord Celeborn was the first to speak. "The enemy knows you have entered here. What hope you had in secrecy is now gone. Nine there are here, yet ten there were set out from Rivendell. Tell me, where is Gandalf? For I much desire to speak with him. I can no longer see him from afar."

Ricky felt his voice was stony and his expression cold.

"Gandalf the Grey did not pass the borders of this land," Galadriel said softly. "He has fallen into Shadow."

Celeborn turned to Galadriel.

"He was taken by both Shadow and flame," Legolas informed her sorrowfully. "A Balrog of Morgoth. For we went needlessly into the net of Moria."

Celeborn looked surprised.

The Fellowship bowed their heads in sadness.

Ricky clenched his fists, ignoring the pain in his left hand as he curled his fingers tight around the bandage. He wouldn't call going through Moria needless. The Hobbits wouldn't have made it over the mountain in that storm and he didn't know if he would have made it himself.

"Needless were none of the deeds of Gandalf in life," said Galadriel. "We do not yet know his full purpose."

Ricky's mouth twitched. Galadriel seemed to have some sense in his mind.

Gimli still had his head down and let out a sad sigh.

Galadriel turned to the Dwarf. "Do not let the great emptiness of Khazad-dûm fill your heart, Gimli, son of Glóin. For the world has grown full of peril, and in all lands, love is now mingled with grief."

Galadriel turned her gaze to Boromir.

Ricky felt Boromir become nervous and he turned in time to see Boromir look away from her. Not much rattled Boromir like that. Ricky's hand crept closer to his dagger, more for security than violence.

"What now becomes of this Fellowship?" asked Celeborn. "Without Gandalf, hope is lost."

Ricky was beginning to seriously not like this Elf.

"The quest stands upon the edge of a knife." Galadriel let her gaze travel over the Fellowship. "Stray but a little and it will fail to the ruin of all. Yet hope remains while the company is true."

Ricky's mouth twitched again, forming the barest of smirks.

Galadriel let her gaze stop on Ricky for a few seconds.

Boromir noticed Ricky's violent jerk, his hand going for one of his daggers, but stopping.

Galadriel looked to Frodo, but addressed the Fellowship. "Do not let your hearts be troubled. Go now and rest, for you are weary with sorrow and much toil."

* * *

They were given a pavilion near a fountain. Most of the Fellowship was there. The Hobbits were resting. Aragorn was sharpening his sword next to a sleeping Gimli. Legolas had gotten up to fill a pitcher from the fountain.

There was mournful singing coming from above them.

"A lament to Gandalf," Legolas said sadly.

"What do they say about him?" Merry asked.

"I have not the heart to tell you." Legolas turned to Merry. "For me, the grief is still too near."

"Bet they don't mention his fireworks," said Sam, helping Pippin organize some pillows for a bed. "Should be a verse for them. The finest rockets ever seen. They burst in stars of blue and green. Or after thunder, silver showers, come falling like a rain of flowers. Oh, that doesn't do them justice by a long road." Sam sat down, disappointed.

Ricky returned from wherever he had been. "Better than what I could come up with on the fly. Keep practicing, Sam."

Pippin sat up from where he decided to flop down. "I just noticed. You're speaking so we can understand you."

"Don't get used to it," said Ricky. "As soon as you get me fired up again, you won't be able to understand me."

Aragorn noticed Boromir sitting on the roots of a tree away from the Fellowship. He got up and walked over to him.

"Take some rest," said Aragorn. "These borders are well protected."

"I will find no rest here," Boromir said. "I heard her voice inside my head. She spoke of my father and the fall of Gondor. She said to me, 'Even now, there is hope left.' But I cannot see it. It is long since we had any hope."

Aragorn sat next to Boromir.

Boromir looked at Aragorn with despair. "My father is a noble man, but his rule is failing, and our . . . our people lose faith. He looks to me to make things right. And I would do it, I would see the glory of Gondor restored. Have you ever seen it, Aragorn? The White Tower of Ecthelion, glimmering like a spike of pearl and silver, its banners caught high in the morning breeze? Have you ever been called home by the clear ringing of silver trumpets?"

"I have seen the White City . . . long ago," Aragorn told him.

Boromir smiled. "One day, our paths will lead us there, and the tower guard will take up the call 'the Lords of Gondor have returned.'"

Aragorn smiled as well and it was only when Boromir looked away that it was replaced by sadness. "As for seeing hope, I think you should speak to Ricky. It seems our youngest member knows more about hope than us."

"No more than you do." Ricky was standing close by, holding his right arm up with his left hand. "I just don't know when to quit. It's not over until you stop breathing, and sometimes that's not enough to stop you."

* * *

Ricky went to make his bed.

It was only an hour, maybe two, later when Ricky woke up. He wasn't sure why he woke up. Ricky sat up and looked at the Fellowship. He counted only eight, including himself. He was short a Hobbit: Frodo.

Ricky immediately was on his feet and looking around for Frodo. It took him a few minutes, but he found Frodo along with Galadriel. They were down a flight of steps at the base of several of the massive trees. The small glade had a low pedestal in the middle with an engraving of a branching tree around it.

Galadriel was kneeling in front of Frodo.

"Even the smallest person can change the course of the future," Galadriel was telling Frodo. "And youth can hold wisdom."

Galadriel turned in Ricky's direction.

Frodo whipped around to see Ricky standing at the top of the steps.

Ricky made his way down to the small glade they were in, watching Galadriel. "Better get back to bed, Frodo. Sam's liable to have a coronary if he wakes up and you're not there."

Frodo nodded and hurried passed Ricky.

Ricky watched Frodo disappear in the trees in the direction of their pavilion. He turned back to Galadriel.

"Why do you hide?" Galadriel asked Ricky.

"You were in my head," Ricky said. "You tell me."

"You are afraid," Galadriel answered. "Afraid of the truth."

Ricky's mouth twitched.

Galadriel turned. "Come with me."

Ricky followed Galadriel out of the glade.

They walked down a narrow path and Galadriel stopped in front of several large bushes. Ricky could hear water on the other side. He thought it was just another fountain.

Using a narrow gap in the bushes, Galadriel passed through to the other side, Ricky following her. Instead of another fountain, there was a hot spring. A few steps away from the hot spring was a stone bench with towels and a change of clothes.

Galadriel went over to a bench and turned her back. "I will not look."

She could hear Ricky taking off his clothes and putting them in a pile. A splash of water told her Ricky was in the hot spring. The water was up to Ricky's neck and the lights around the hot spring only casted shadows and glares on the water. Ricky's body was hidden.

But his hair was not. It was a bird's nest that hadn't been combed or cut in a long time. Ricky had made a poor attempt at keeping it braided and hidden under his bandana. He couldn't remember when the last time he had taken the time to properly wash it, but it was probably back in Rivendell when he had his last hot bath.

Galadriel brought over a comb and oil for Ricky's hair. The Elf queen had to use her fingers to comb out the tangles after she removed the rubber bands Ricky used to keep the ends from unraveling. She poured the oil on Ricky's hair and massaged it in. Ricky rinsed it out himself, dunking his head under a few times. Galadriel combed his hair out. Without the tangles, Ricky's hair fell over his shoulders in a black curtain. It was not as long as the Elves wore their hair, but it was longer than what a typical Man kept it. Ricky looked over his shoulder at Galadriel as she finished. Without his goggles and with his hair loose, his face looked softer, though it still looked too gaunt to be healthy.

Galadriel turned away again when Ricky got out. When she turned around again, Ricky was sitting on the bench with a large towel pulled around his shoulders. Galadriel came behind him and dried and combed his hair again. She began to braid it at the front of his head and against his scalp and worked her way back. When she was finished, Ricky's hair was in a thick braid that could be easily tucked under his knit hat and bandana.

"You didn't have to do this," Ricky said quietly. "You have better things to do with your time."

"It has been many years since I doted on a child. It matters not to me that the child is one of Men," said Galadriel.

Galadriel stood up and turned away for a third time while Ricky got dressed. He left the bandages off his hand. The clothes the Elves left for him were very similar to the sets given to him in Rivendell. They were a silvery green color, similar to some of the other Elves' clothes he had seen, but he had been given a loose vest of a darker color for over top. Ricky buttoned it up. It made him look a little bulkier than what he really was.

"Thank you," Ricky said softly.

Galadriel tied a silk scarf around Ricky's head, tucking his hair underneath. "You do not need to be afraid of who you truly are. The Fellowship knows you have strength. It would be foolish of them to place who you are above your skills."

"Hmph. Skills." Ricky was a bit amused. "A street rat who up until two months ago didn't have anybody giving a damn about him. I run, I steal, I fight."

Galadriel smiled. "Yes, you fight. You are able to stand victorious. But remember, Ricky Weiss, your strength not only lies in your body, but in your mind." Galadriel touched Ricky's head. She moved her hand to Ricky's chest. "And in your heart."

Ricky smiled.

Galadriel followed Ricky back to the pavilion and tucked him into his bed. _You have experienced the evil of Men, more so than any child should endure. But you are not alone. Through these trials, you will find happiness._

Ricky looked up at her. "I don't want happiness," he whispered. His green eyes were shimmering with tears. "I want a family."

 _And you have one. You do not see it yet._

* * *

Ricky was having a hard time believing that he actually going to see Within Temptation. Well, some of it was easy considering he was really good at picking pockets. He had heard the band's CD playing at the foster home he had been staying at three months ago. Ricky didn't have the best seats to see them, but he wasn't going to complain as long as he could hear.

Dressed in a baggy sweatshirt and jeans, he acted casually and pretended he was with the group standing in front of him. He was eleven and didn't want to have to answer a bunch of questions about where his parents were.

Within Temptation certainly knew how to put on a show. Their lead singer had the voice of an angel. Ricky wasn't one for fairytale fantasies, but he liked their songs. "The Last Dance" was one of the songs that stuck with him the most.

* * *

In the morning, Ricky, surprisingly, was the last one up. What he woke up to was Gimli standing over him, staring at him with a suspicious look.

"What, Gimli?" Ricky asked.

"I'm seeing if the Elves stole our lad and replaced him with a changling," Gimli said.

Ricky punched Gimli in the leg. "I had a bath. I can't look that different."

"You do," said Gimli. "I thought you were a lass at first."

Ricky shot up. "Screw you, Gimli!" He grabbed the first thing within reach and threw it at Gimli. Gimli ducked out of the way and ran off.

Ricky rubbed his hand over his face. "God." He got up and found the Elves had left food for them, but it was almost gone. Ricky looked around, trying to locate his boots. They weren't anywhere to be seen. Then he remembered he left them at the hot spring, along with his other clothes and his goggles. Squinting, he fumbled through his pack and found his tinted goggles where he left them. Now that he could see again, he went to grab one of the few cold rolls left on a plate. There was no butter or jam and Ricky thought nothing of it. He bit into the roll and looked around.

Legolas was fletching arrows, sitting on the roots of a tree.

"Hey."

Legolas looked up from the arrow in his hand. "Good morning, Ricky. I trust you slept well."

Ricky sat next to him, half a roll in his hand. "Yeah, whatever. I need to talk to you about what happened last night. I didn't have the energy to jump down your throat and I don't think anybody would have appreciated it, either."

"And what is it you wish to speak to me about?" asked Legolas.

"I'm just gonna come out and say it," said Ricky. "You blamed Gimli for what happened to Gandalf."

Legolas's eyes widened.

"You didn't do it intentionally," Ricky went on. "But when you said it was needless for us to go through, you made it sound like it was Gimli's fault."

"You are right," said Legolas. "It was not my intention. I spoke out of sorrow."

"Any one of us could be blamed," said Ricky. "Pippin could be blamed for knocking down that skeleton and bucket. I could be blamed for not being quick enough to stop it. The storm could be blamed for forcing us to take a different route. Hell, you can blame Saruman and those damn birds. You can even blame Gandalf, because I'm pretty sure he knew that Balrog was down there."

Legolas's face fell. "I must apologize to Gimli."

"And something else?" said Ricky. "You might wanna get over whatever it is with Gimli. We gotta long way to go to get to Mordor. Petty bitchin' isn't gonna help much."

Ricky got up and wandered off. He found Boromir giving sword lessons to Merry and Pippin again. He found a place to sit and observe. He finished his roll and sat back and watched. The Hobbits were getting better and Boromir seemed a little more at ease being in Lothlórien.

A glint of white caught Ricky's eye. He looked up and saw Galadriel. She looked down at him and smiled. In one hand was a red apple.

"Eat," she said, offering the apple.

Ricky took the apple and took a bite out of it. "Boromir seems a bit better," he said with his mouth full. "They all do. They found something to keep busy."

"They will deal with their grief in their own way," said Galadriel. "And how are you dealing with your grief?"

"I'm okay," said Ricky. "Gandalf wasn't the first person I saw die. I'm not going to let his sacrifice be in vain. If anything, I'm using it to keep moving forward."

Galadriel looked down at Ricky as he took another bite of his apple.

Ricky swallowed before continuing. "Hopefully Gandalf will be the only one of us to fall. And I know it's stupid, but I want him to be the last. It's a long shot, but it could happen."

"Then it would be best for all of you to train hard while you are here," said Galadriel, watching the Hobbits and Boromir.

Ricky nodded. He remembered the Asian man who took care of him for two years before he died. Ricky was only five when they met and could never pronounce his name, so the man told him to call him Lee. Ricky had watched Lee die.

"Follow me," Galadriel said.

Ricky got up and followed her.

Where she led him to was the training grounds. They were very similar to the ones in Rivendell. There were Elves sparring with swords and knives and on the other side of the grounds was an archery field. Ricky gave a smile when he saw some sand pits for hand to hand combat.

"Rúmil!" Galadriel called.

One Elf in the sand pits turned to his Lady. He dusted himself off and walked over to them.

"Ricky, this is Rúmil," Galadriel introduced. "He is part of the guard. He is also the younger brother of Haldir."

Ricky could see the resemblance. They both had straight blonde hair and the shape of their eyes was similar enough that they could only be blood.

"Rúmil does not speak much Common Tongue," Galadriel continued.

"Not the first time I've had to deal with a language barrier," Ricky said.

Galadriel turned to Rúmil. Ricky was able to pick out his own name when Galadriel spoke. Rúmil replied to whatever she had said.

Galadriel turned back to Ricky. "Rúmil has agreed to be your sparring partner."

"Okay," said Ricky. "Thanks."

Rúmil led Ricky over to the sand pits and got into a fighting position. Ricky checked to make sure his silk bandana was on tight enough. He didn't want his hair getting in the way.

"Ready when you are, Rúmil," said Ricky, gesturing for him to start.

Their spar was much like all the spar Ricky had with Glorfindel. Ricky ducked under Rúmil's blows and attacked with his feet. Rúmil had not come across a fighting style like this before, but unlike Glorfindel, he dodged more than he tried to retaliate. That's when he saw a flaw in Ricky's style: the boy was growing tired quickly. He was wasting his strength missing Rúmil. All Rúmil needed to do was wait until Ricky was tired and then strike.

Ricky realized what Rúmil was doing. No one else had waited to strike back before. Ricky knew he was going to lose embarrassingly if things kept up like this. He needed to change tactics.

Rúmil swung and Ricky couldn't dodge in time. The punch hit him in the goggles and Ricky went down. He tumbled back so he came to rest on his knees. Ricky pulled up his goggles so they rested on his head, holding the silk headscarf in place.

"Shit!" Ricky touched where his goggles went around his face.

Rúmil stood over Ricky, waiting to see if he was all right.

"Okay, that's gonna be sore later," Ricky grumbled. He got up and faced Rúmil. Ricky didn't know how else to tell Rúmil he was ready for round two besides putting his fists up and sliding into a defensive stance.

Rúmil was a bit hesitant after he knocked down the boy. His eye was already beginning to swell shut.

Ricky made the first move. It was a low kick that Rúmil sidestepped. Ricky pushed off in Rúmil's direction and slammed his elbow into Rúmil's stomach. Ricky straightened up immediately and slammed his other elbow into Rúmil's shoulder. Although he was tired, Ricky launched a series of kicks that hit Rúmil in the stomach. Ricky spun around and kicked Rúmil in the stomach once more. Rúmil went down on his backside.

"You good?" Ricky asked.

Rúmil got to his feet and went back into a defensive stance.

"Round three it is," Ricky said with a shrug.

Rúmil and Ricky met together and began exchanging blows. Ricky batted a few punches away and dove into Rúmil's blind spot. By the time Rúmil located Ricky again, Ricky had Rúmil in a headlock. Rúmil flipped Ricky over onto his back. Ricky's foot snapped up and struck Rúmil in the head. Ricky rolled around and got to his feet. He blocked Rúmil's punch and kicked out and hit Rúmil twice before having to place his foot down again.

Ricky dropped to his knees and grabbed Rúmil's ankle. He pulled as hard as he could and Rúmil almost did a full split. Rúmil quickly put his hands down to avoid injury. Ricky pushed off on one foot, bringing his other leg up. The boy's knee connected with the Elf's head.

Ricky got back to his feet and took a few steps back, his fists up.

Rúmil sat up, a bruise already beginning to darken on his temple.

"You good?" Ricky asked.

Rúmil reached up and touched the bruise with a groan. A couple Elves who were spectating came over to help Rúmil to his feet.

A gentle hand touched Ricky's shoulder. He turned and saw it was Galadriel.

"Well done," she commented.

Ricky gave a half smile, trying to ignore the throbbing in his own face.

Galadriel began to lead Ricky away from the training grounds. "Come. Let's get your injuries treated."

Galadriel took Ricky back to the Mallorn tree they met Celeborn and Galadriel in. A small table and two chairs were now set out on the platform. The table was set for lunch.

Ricky frowned up at Galadriel.

Galadriel smiled. She touched the side of his face. "We need to clean this."

Galadriel had Ricky sit at the table. She picked up a jar and a bandage that were sitting off to the side. Inside the jar was strong smelling herbal mix. She smeared the paste over the swelling of Ricky's eye.

Ricky's eyes watered and he sneezed. "Wow, that's strong," he muttered, dabbing at his eyes with the cuff of his sleeve.

Galadriel also smeared the paste on Ricky's injured left hand and bandaged it. She handed Ricky a moist cloth to wipe his hands with before he began eating.

Ricky immediately went for the plate of meat on the table. He got two big pieces and started on them.

Galadriel smiled and sat down. She daintily ate a salad on her plate. Ricky finished off the meat and helped himself to a small salad and what looked to be tomato soup. As soon as he took a sip of the soup, he realized it wasn't tomato, but some sort of squash that he had in the past. Whatever it was, it was good.

"Does the Fellowship not feed you?" Galadriel asked.

"Used to livin' off a few bites a day," Ricky replied. He took a swig from a water cup. "God forbid anythin' happens, the Hobbits have somethin' to eat. They're not used to goin' without anythin' to eat."

"How noble of you," Galadriel said.

"Don't know if it's noble, but I know hunger and I can deal with it."

"Ricky."

Ricky looked up from his plate.

Galadriel was looking at him with that piercing gaze of hers. "When the quest is over, you will never know hunger again."

* * *

It was much later when Ricky went back to the Fellowship's camp.

"Where have you been?" asked Boromir.

"Don't worry about it," replied Ricky. "Where's Frodo? I need to talk to him."

Boromir sneered and pointed where Frodo was.

The Hobbits were sitting at a table, eating their fifth meal of the day.

Ricky went over to the table and tapped Frodo on the shoulder. "I need to talk to you. In private."

Frodo nodded and left the table to follow Ricky.

They walked far enough away that the Hobbits could see them, but couldn't hear them. Ricky knelt down so he was smaller than Frodo.

"I know this is harder for you than for any of us," Ricky said. "But I want to tell you something I learned long ago. People make promises all the time if you do something for them. Don't listen to them. The reward is never worth the price. That Ring is going to tempt you. Don't listen to it."

"It is not so easy, Ricky," said Frodo. "Each step towards Mordor, the Ring grows heavier. I know Boromir is already tempted by it. I am afraid he will try to take it."

"And I'll fight like hell to keep it from him," said Ricky.

Frodo smiled.

"Frodo, I've seen suffering," said Ricky. "Misery loves company. Sauron just wants company. That's why he's going after you. If he gets the Ring, it won't stop at Middle Earth. He will never be satisfied."

"I know," said Frodo. "That is why I have to destroy it."

Ricky nodded. "Then we better make sure you destroy it. Now, the Ring tempts you. What does it say to you?"

Frodo lowered his head.

"Frodo," Ricky said warningly. "I'm asking for a reason."

"It promises me wealth," Frodo answered quietly.

"You have a home," Ricky responded strongly.

Frodo blinked. The look in Ricky's green eyes encouraged him to continue. "It promises me power."

"You have the Fellowship."

"It promises me to be able to protect my friends and family."

"You have love."

Frodo stared at Ricky. His eyes had darkened slightly.

"And that's something I don't have," Ricky finished. "Believe in yourself and the others and not the Ring, and you'll be able to do this."

Ricky ran his hand through Frodo's dark curls. "The Ring is evil. You are good. You carry love and hope in your heart. The Ring carries empty promises. Now, what is the Ring?"

Frodo was confused. Ricky just told him what it was.

"Say it," said Ricky.

"The Ring is evil."

"What are you?"

"I am good?"

"What do you carry?"

"Love and hope."

"Where?"

"In my heart."

"What does the ring carry?"

"Empty promises."

Ricky gave a nod of approval.

They went through the mantra again and again until Ricky was sure Frodo would remember it in his sleep.

When they went to sleep that night, Ricky heard Frodo muttering.

"The Ring is evil. I am good. I carry love and hope in my heart. The Ring carries empty promises."

Ricky smiled.

Legolas listened, curious. Whatever Frodo was talking about would help him fight the temptation of the Ring in the future.

* * *

 **Song Ricky sings is "The Last Dance" by Within Temptation from The Unforgiving album.**

 **So why does Ricky hide and what is he hiding? Let me say this; from the beginning, I have had a plot twist in mind and now that I've started posting and getting feedback, I have mixed feelings about it. I want it to be a surprise, but I have started to drop hints about what it could be throughout some of the chapters. You have to look very closely to find them. Even if I decide to ditch the twist, it won't affect the previous chapters. As always, let me know what you think on the review board and if you think you may have the twist figured out, PM me because I would rather you didn't spoil the surprise for those who haven't figured it out.**


	7. Down the River

**So I know I said I would be working on the new Dragon Trainer, Dragon Speaker to post this weekend, but now I'm not sure if that is going to happen. So to make things up to you and give you something to read this weekend, I decided to post this chapter. This is actually going to finish out _The Fellowship of the Ring_.**

* * *

During their time in Lothlórien, Ricky was usually at the training grounds with whoever was there. Many of the Elves were interested in the odd way the boy fought. During the spars, the Elves learned that Ricky liked to attack from below or from their blind spots, using his agility and flexibility. Rúmil was all right and introduced Ricky to Orophir, his and Haldir's other brother. Like Rúmil, Orophir spoke little Common Tongue, but they made it work. They took the time to show Ricky different techniques with his daggers and took him to the archery range to practice.

The Elves also took it upon themselves to challenge Ricky's skills in overcoming obstacles one may encounter while in a battle. This ended with several colorful curses from Ricky each time he missed catching a tree branch or slipping on a rock. Once he even fell off a wall when he was trying to roll the length of it. After getting the breath back in him, he went back and did the trick again just to prove he could do it. However, Aragorn was helping him wrap his ankle that night when he didn't tell the Elves he had twisted it on the second attempt.

Ricky was also putting on weight. The Elves were always giving him snacks after training, usually apples. One Elf joked that Ricky was like a horse; hard-working and loves apples. Ricky planted his boot in the Elf's behind when it was his turn to spar.

While the Fellowship rested, they dealt with their grief. Ricky was quick to get over Gandalf's death, along with Boromir and Aragorn. Gimli came to terms with what happened in Moria was not his fault. Legolas was hurt deeply by the loss as Elves are immortal and Legolas had known Gandalf for many years. Frodo, Sam, and Merry understood they would never see Gandalf's fireworks again. It was Pippin who was taking it the hardest. He blamed himself for Gandalf's death.

Frodo was sleeping better. The Ring did not torment him during the time they spent with the Elves. It still felt heavy at times, but the whispers were at a minimum. This could have been because of the Elves' magic or it could have been the mantra Ricky made him recite every night before he went to sleep which made him ignore the whispers.

* * *

One night at dinner, Aragorn said, "We leave at dawn. We have spent too much time here."

"How long have we been there?" asked Merry.

"A month," replied Aragorn.

"A month?" the Hobbits repeated.

Ricky, Gimli, and Boromir stared at Aragorn like he was crazy.

"It is because of Galadriel's power," Legolas explained. "We do not notice the passage of time."

Aragorn gave a small nod. "Get some rest tonight. Tomorrow, we leave on the boats to the Anduin River."

When they were finished eating, they packed their things so there was less to do in the morning. The Hobbits went to bed first with Ricky making Frodo do his mantra and then singing his lullaby to him. Once they were asleep, Ricky got up and moved over to Boromir.

"So," Ricky started.

Boromir looked at Ricky.

"Ready for tomorrow?" Ricky asked.

"Are you?" asked Boromir.

"Yeah, I'm ready," Ricky replied easily.

Boromir snorted. "You sound overconfident. Do you understand the danger we are walking into?"

"Not fully," Ricky replied. "But I get that I could die at any moment."

Boromir shook his head. "Does your life truly mean so little to you?"

"In the scheme of things, yes, my life doesn't mean much," replied Ricky. "What matters is that Frodo gets to Mount Doom and destroys the Ring. We promised that we would help him reach that goal no matter what. Or did you forget that?"

"No, I did not," Boromir answered. "But this quest is hopeless."

"It only seems hopeless," said Ricky.

"Gandalf is dead," said Boromir. "Without him, I cannot see us finishing this quest."

Ricky gave a frustrated groan and fell back in the grass where he sat. After a moment, he said, "You know, I don't put Frodo through that mantra every night for the fun of it. He has to remember why he is doing this. Maybe I need to come up with one for you."

"I do not need one," Boromir insisted.

Ricky thought for a moment. "'When you think all is forsaken, listen to me now: all is not forsaken. You need never feel broken again. Sometimes darkness can show you the light.'"

Ricky got up and brushed himself off. "Let me know if you want to hear more of it." He walked away.

Galadriel was just off behind a tree. Ricky glanced up at her when he walked by.

"I would like to hear more of it," Galadriel told Ricky.

"It's from a song," Ricky explained. "I'm not that great of a singer."

"You do not have to sing it," said Galadriel.

Ricky took a moment to remember the words and began to tell Galadriel how he came to first hear them.

* * *

It was a chilly night and Ricky was hungry. It was about eleven o'clock and many restaurants were already closed. However, it was a weekend and the Starbucks would only begin to start to close now.

Ricky found the door was still unlocked and went into to the coffee shop.

"We're closing in a few minutes," a barista called from behind the counter.

"If I help you close, can you give me some of the food that's going to be thrown out?" Ricky asked.

The barista looked up.

Ricky had his cleanest clothes on and he had showered that morning at a youth center. He didn't look like he was homeless, just that he had a rough night.

The barista thought about it. "I'm a person short. Can you wash dishes?"

Ricky nodded. "Just tell me what needs to be washed."

A second barista brought the dishes to the back.

Ricky rolled up his sleeves and started washing out the tea jugs. Someone had a rock station playing on the radio that sat above the sink.

"Like an unsung melody, the truth is waiting there for you to find it," came the lyrics through the speakers. "It's not a blight, but a remedy; a clear reminder of how it began. Deep inside your memory; turned away as you struggled to find it. You heard the call as you walked away; a voice of calm from within the silence. And for what seemed an eternity, you're waiting, hoping it would call out again. You heard the shadow reckoning, then your fears seemed to keep you blinded. You held your guard as you walked away. When you think all is forsaken, listen to me now (all is not forsaken): you need never feel broken again. Sometimes darkness can show you the light.

"An unforgivable tragedy; the answer isn't where you think you'd find it. Prepare yourself for the reckoning for when your world seems to crumble again. Don't be afraid, don't turn away. You're the one who can redefine it. Don't let hope become a memory. Let the shadow permeate your mind and reveal that thoughts that were tucked away, so that the door can be opened again. Within your darkest memories lies the answer if you dare to find it. Don't let hope become a memory. When you think all is forsaken, listen to me now (all is not forsaken): you need never feel broken again. Sometimes darkness can show you the light.

"Sickening, weakening; don't let another somber pariah consume your soul. You need strengthening, toughening; it takes an inner dark to rekindle the fire burning in you. Ignite the fire in you. When you think all is forsaken, listen to me now (all is not forsaken): you need never feel broken again. Sometimes darkness can show you the light. Don't ignore. Listen to me now (all is not forsaken): you need never feel broken again. Sometimes darkness can show you the light."

The song faded out before the DJ came on. "That was Disturbed with "The Light" and before that was Five Finger Death Punch "Bad Company" and Evanescence's "Bring Me To Life". My name is -."

Ricky couldn't hear anymore because he turned the hot tap on to rinse out the jugs he finished with.

When the dishes were done, the barista gave him the unwrapped food that couldn't be donated, even heating a breakfast sandwich up so he could have hot eggs and ham. Ricky wrapped up the rest the best he could and took it back to where he was staying for the week.

* * *

At dawn, the Fellowship stood by the Silverlode River. Several Elves stood in front of them and fastened green-grey cloaks around their shoulders held in place with a green, silver-veined leaf pin. Celeborn fastened Aragorn's himself.

"Never before have we clad strangers in the garb of our own people," said Celeborn. "May these cloaks help shield you from unfriendly eyes."

Galadriel then came forward, bearing gifts for the Fellowship. To Legolas, she gave an elegant bow. "My gift for you, Legolas, is a bow of the Galadhrim. Worthy of the skill of our woodland kin."

Legolas tested the bow.

She moved to Merry and Pippin. She gave them each a dagger. "These are the daggers of the Noldorin. They have already seen service in war." She looked at Pippin. "Do not fear, young Peregrin Took. You will find your courage."

Sam was next. She handed him a length of rope. "And for you, Samwise Gamgee, Elven rope made of hithlain."

"Thank you, my lady," he said with a bow. He glanced over at Merry and Pippin. "Have you run out of those nice, shiny daggers?" he asked hesitantly.

Galadriel smiled.

Sam looked down in embarrassment.

Galadriel stepped over to Gimli. "And what gift would a Dwarf ask of the Elves?"

Gimli shook his head. "Nothing." He looked up at her. "Except to look upon the lady of the Galadhrim one last time for she is more fair than all the jewels beneath the earth."

Galadriel laughed.

Gimli scowled at himself and turned away. He turned back. "Actually, there was one thing. No, no, I couldn't. It's quite impossible. Stupid to ask."

"Ask," Galadriel said softly. She leaned over for Gimli to whisper in her ear. She smiled and combed her fingers through her hair.

After Gimli came Aragorn.

"I have nothing greater to give than the gift you already bear." She touched the shining pendant around his neck. " _For her love, I fear the grace of Arwen Evenstar . . . will diminish._ "

" _I would have her leave these shores, and be with her people. I would have her take the ship to Valinor,_ " Aragorn said.

"That choice is yet before her. You have your own choice to make, Aragorn," Galadriel informed him. "To rise above the height of all your fathers since the days of Elendil or to fall into darkness with all that is left of your kin. Namárië."

Aragorn bowed his head.

Galadriel lifted his chin with her fingers. " _There is much you have yet to do. We shall not meet again, Elessar._ "

Galadriel moved to Boromir. She handed him a solid gold belt shaped like linked golden leaves. Tied to the belt was a small pouch with a golden charm. "For you, Boromir, I give you this belt of gold, and the chance to see the hope that remains. Keep it close."

To Ricky, she gave a pair of Elvish boots. They were made for tiny feet such as Ricky's and they were very light.

"For one so nimble, special boots are needed. Your feet will never tire as long as your spirit stays strong."

Ricky took the boots. "Thank you," he whispered.

Galadriel tipped Ricky's chin up to make eye contact. "Remember, let your actions speak for you, not your appearance."

Ricky actually smiled at that.

Finally it was Frodo's turn. In her hand was a crystal phial. "I give you the light of Eärendil, our most beloved star." Galadriel bent over and kissed Frodo's head. "May it be a light for you in dark places, when all other lights go out."

Celeborn took Aragorn aside while the others loaded and got into three small boats. "Every league you travel south, the danger will increase," Celeborn told him. "Mordor Orcs now hold the eastern shore of the Anduin. Nor will you find safety on the western bank. Strange creatures bearing the White Hand have been seen on our borders. Seldom do Orcs journey in the open under the sun, yet these have done so."

Celeborn handed Aragorn a curved dagger.

Aragorn unsheathed the dagger. It was a beautiful, deadly work of art.

" _You are being tracked._ "

Aragorn sheathed the dagger.

"By river you have the chance of outrunning the enemy to the Falls of Rauros," Celeborn continued.

They packed up the rest of their things in the boats. Aragorn would take Frodo and Sam, Boromir would take Merry and Pippin, and Legolas would take Gimli and Ricky.

Ricky sat at the front of their boat and heard Gimli grumbling.

"I have taken my worst wound at this parting having looked my last upon that which is fairest. Henceforth I will call nothing fair unless it be her gift to me."

"What was it?" Legolas asked.

"I asked for one hair from her golden head," Gimli said. "She gave me three."

Legolas smiled.

Ricky turned around to look at Gimli. It was difficult to read his expression now that he was wearing his goggles and knit hat again.

"Oh, don't give me that look, lad," snapped Gimli. "I wasn't asking your opinion."

"I didn't say a word," Ricky defended. His mouth twisted upwards. "But that was so sweet of you, Gimli."

Gimli scoffed.

"I mean it," Ricky insisted. "If some guy said that to me, I would be flattered. 'Course, livin' in New York, I would probably have to tell him go screw himself. Chances are that guy only had one thing on his mind." He shrugged. "Then again, I don't know human men around here that well, Aragorn and Boromir bein' the only ones I have any contact with."

The three boats eventually joined the Anduin River. Green trees became withered and brown. Birds sent up warning calls and scattered to the grey sky.

* * *

They traveled on the river for days, stopping only at night to rest.

On their ninth day on the water, when it was becoming too dark to see, they pulled up the boats on the west shore.

Boromir was hiding behind a rock, watching the river. A log floated slowly down the river, but there was a small hand holding onto it. There was something following them.

Aragorn came up behind Boromir. "Gollum," he said quietly. "He has tracked us since Moria. I had hoped we would lose him on the river. But he is too clever a waterman."

The log settled on the eastern shore, caught on other river debris.

"And if he alerts the enemy to our whereabouts, it will make the crossing even more dangerous," said Boromir.

At the campfire, Frodo was listening to the two Men.

"Have some food, Mr. Frodo," Sam said.

"No, Sam," Frodo told him.

"You haven't eaten anything all day." Sam moved to sit with Frodo. "You're not sleeping, neither. Don't think I haven't noticed. Mr. Frodo."

"I'm all right."

"But you're not. I'm here to help you," said Sam. "I promised Gandalf that I would."

Frodo turned to Sam. "You can't help me, Sam. Not this time. Now get some sleep." He turned away again.

Sam saw he was getting nowhere tonight and left him alone.

Ricky, however, had a different idea. He came to kneel in front of Frodo. "What is the Ring?"

Frodo sighed. "Not now, Ricky."

Ricky put one hand on Frodo's shoulder. "What is the Ring?" he asked sternly.

Frodo stared up at Ricky with wide eyes. He then turned his gaze to his feet. "Evil," he responded quietly.

"And what are you?"

"Good."

"What does the Ring carry?"

"Empty promises."

"And you?"

"Love and hope."

"In your heart," Ricky added, poking Frodo in the chest to remind him. "And don't you forget it. Because from here on out, whatever happens to any of us, you fight like hell to get to Mordor and back. You got that?"

Frodo nodded.

"Good." Ricky gave his shoulder a slap. "Now get something to eat."

"I'm not hungry," Frodo told him.

"If you don't eat, I don't eat," Ricky said.

Frodo stared at Ricky. "All right." He got up and dished a little stew out of the pot. He didn't want to eat, but with Ricky watching him, he didn't want to starve him. After finishing his small portion, he went to where he had his bedroll set up near the fire.

Boromir turned away from the rock. "Minas Tirith is the safer road. You know that. From there we can regroup. Strike out for Mordor from a place of strength."

"There is no strength in Gondor that can avail us," said Aragorn.

"You were quick enough to trust the Elves," Boromir snapped.

Aragorn said nothing.

"Have you so little faith in your own people?" Boromir asked desperately. "Yes, there is weakness. There is frailty. But there is courage also, and honor to be found in Men. But you will not see that."

Aragorn turned away only to be grabbed by his tunic by Boromir.

"You are afraid!" said Boromir.

From the small campfire, Frodo was awake and listening. He wasn't the only one. Ricky crawled over to Frodo and sat by his head with his fingers in Frodo's hair.

"Let me worry about this," Ricky whispered to him.

"All your life you have hidden in the shadows," said Boromir. "You are scared of who you are, of what you are."

Aragorn calmly fixed his tunic and turned away from Boromir. "I will not lead the Ring within a hundred leagues of your city."

Frodo felt Ricky pat his head and heard him get up.

Boromir passed Ricky as Ricky made his way over to Aragorn. "He is hopeless!" he hissed to Ricky.

Ricky glared at him, but said nothing.

He stopped by Aragorn as he went through his pack on the boat. "Wanna talk about it?"

Aragorn looked over his shoulder. "There is little to say."

"Bullshit. You're not one to get worked up over nothing."

"You would not understand," Aragorn tried to deflect.

"If you say I'm too young to understand, I'm going to have to hit you," Ricky cut in.

Aragorn was quiet for a moment. "What do you know about the Ring?"

"Created by Sauron, got cut off his finger during a battle, and someone named Isildur picked it up and was supposed to destroy it but didn't."

"Isildur is my ancestor," Aragorn told Ricky. "His blood is in my veins."

"So what?"

"I share the same weakness," Aragorn said.

Ricky snorted. "There's no way you're that stupid."

Aragorn blinked.

"You share blood. So what?" Ricky went on. "My great-great-great-grandfather could have been in politics, but could you see me doing something like that? You're Aragorn, not Isildur, dumbass. And if you are, then I'm a frickin' Orc."

Aragorn chuckled a little at that. "Arwen also told me I was not Isildur."

"Smart lady," said Ricky. "You should listen to her."

Aragorn smiled.

"Hey." Ricky's demeanor became serious. "You may share blood and you may share the same weakness, but unlike Isildur, if I think for one minute you're gonna become like him, I'm putting an arrow in your ass. And don't think I won't."

"You sound so confident," said Aragorn.

"Somebody's gotta be with all the negativity I've been hearin'," Ricky replied.

He started to walk away, but stopped. "Aragorn?"

Aragorn paused in what had turned to do.

"I know I didn't talk to many of the Elves in Rivendell, but I'm not stupid. Arwen loves you. And you love her. I saw you two when we left Rivendell. You need to stay alive to see her again. Just remember that if getting shot in the ass doesn't discourage you enough."

Ricky went back to sit with Frodo. He glanced at the others and saw Pippin was still awake. He crawled over to him.

"What's wrong?"

"It's my fault," whimpered Pippin.

"What was?" asked Ricky. "Gandalf?"

Pippin nodded.

"It's not your fault," Ricky said. "I'm gonna tell you what I told Legolas: you can blame nobody or you can blame everybody. Everythin' had a hand in what happened in Moria. Yeah, you knocked the skeleton down, but I wasn't fast enough to catch it. If there wasn't a storm, we could have crossed the mountains. If it wasn't those frickin' birds, we never would have had to cross the mountains early. Pippin, there were a lot of things we couldn't do anythin' about. This ain't your fault."

Pippin gazed up at Ricky with large eyes. "You really think that?"

"Hell yeah, I know it," Ricky said. "Now get some sleep."

Pippin closed his eyes. "Ricky, can you sing again? That yay-yay-yay song?"

Ricky nodded. "She sent for you last night, she heard you were calling, yearning in tears a thousand times. Your spirit was floating, your spirit was searching on a cloud of dreams. Among ancients bright in the city of angels, guiding the dreamers back to life. And they'll do the same every tomorrow, 'til the pain subsides."

After his song, Ricky went to sleep himself.

* * *

There was shouting from below the bedroom floor. Ricky looked over at his roommate, a girl about his age. She was crying in the corner. Ricky himself was standing by the door, his arms crossed over his chest.

"He's drunk again," Ricky muttered. He glanced over at his roommate. "Cryin' about it s'not gonna change it."

The girl looked up at Ricky in a rage. Her dark eyes were red from all her crying. "How can you say that?"

"You t'ink I don't know it?" Ricky asked coldly.

"You're a cold bitch, Ricky," the girl snapped.

Ricky didn't take the bait. "Been cawed woise." He turned back to the door.

"How do you do it?" the girl asked.

"Do what?" asked Ricky.

"Keep it together? You're always so calm. I don't think I've seen you angry, just cold."

Ricky turned to her. "'Cause I know nobody ca'es. Nevah did, nevah will, not unless we do somethin' woith anythin'. You get used to it."

The girl sniffed and wiped her eyes on her sleeve. "You just don't care about anyone but yourself?"

"Welcome t' life, Michelle."

Ricky turned away.

It was dark in their room and only becoming darker. It was also getting hotter.

"Ash nazg durbatulûk."

" _They will leave you if you tell them._ "

"Ash nazg gimbatul."

" _You will be weak in their eyes. Take the Ring. Use it and show all of Middle Earth what you are capable of._ "

"Ash nazg thrakatulûk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul!"

The world was on fire.

* * *

Ricky threw himself off his bedroll with a dagger in hand. He was soaked in sweat. He whipped around to Frodo to see the Hobbit asleep. His eyes went to the chain at Frodo's neck. His gaze moved lower to where the Ring would be under Frodo's shirt.

"I already told you once," he whispered, glaring at the Ring. "Fuck off, you sonovabitch!"

Ricky rolled over on his bedroll and went back to sleep.

* * *

Aragorn and Boromir were still at odds with each other when they got up a few hours later. They didn't speak to one another and Aragorn wouldn't even look at Boromir. In the meantime, Boromir was glaring at Aragorn from across the water.

They were paddling through the rocky gorge as the sun rose.

"Frodo," Aragorn said quietly.

Frodo looked up in front of him.

Two enormous stone statues stood on either side of the river, guarding it, their left hands outstretched to signal someone to stop. In their right hands were their swords.

"The Argonoth," Aragorn said in awed.

They all stared up at the silent sentinels.

"Long have I desired to look upon the kings of old . . . my kin," Aragorn said almost said to himself.

"Wow," breathed Ricky.

They all watched in stunned silence as the current took them through the narrow gap at the statues' feet.

* * *

Another hour on the water brought them close to the Falls of Rauros. They beached their boats on the west shore.

"We cross the lake at nightfall, hide the boats and continue on foot," Aragorn told them. "We approach Mordor from the North."

"Oh, yes," Gimli said sarcastically. "Just a simple matter of finding our way through Emyn Muil, an impassable labyrinth of razor-sharp rocks. And after that, it gets even better! A festering, stinking marshland as far as the eye can see."

"That is our road," Aragorn told him. "I suggest you take some rest and recover your strength, Master Dwarf."

Gimli bristled. "Recover my -!"

Ricky smiled and filled his water bottle. He slipped it back in his pack. He checked his pockets for his Altoids tin and a ration of lembas bread the Elves had sent with them. In his boots were his straight razor and his multi-tool. The multi-tool was uncomfortable in his right boot, but Ricky was ready to trade comfort for preparedness. Tucked into his waistband was his suture kit. His pack had his spare clothes and food. As often as he brushed off the danger they were going to face, Ricky was not going to let something stupid kill him. From this point on he wasn't going anywhere unarmed and unprepared.

Ricky wandered off to look around. This place used to be a fort or a city or something. It was in ruins now and many of the light grey stones were crumbling and overgrown with vines and trees. He wondered what it would have looked like before now. Would New York look like this eventually if it became abandoned?

"Frodo!" he faintly heard someone call frantically.

Ricky whipped his head around, trying to find the source of the voice. He began running in the direction of the shout.

He found Boromir looking around wildly. "Boromir!"

Boromir turned to Ricky. "Have you seen Frodo?"

"No. I heard you yellin'. What the hell's goin' on?"

Boromir's face was a mask of horror and shame. "I tried to take the Ring from Frodo."

"You what?" Ricky cried, his voice cracking. "You idiot! We gotta find him. Which way did he go?"

"He disappeared," Boromir moaned. "I do not know where he is."

Ricky growled. He stopped and looked around. "Do you hear that?"

Boromir listened.

It was a faint sound and wouldn't have been noticed unless someone really listened. Ricky, who was listening for Frodo, caught it. At first he thought it was just noise on the wind, but it was too rhythmic and repetitive to be just wildlife. Then they heard two voices screaming.

Boromir and Ricky said nothing as they ran towards the shouts. What they found were Merry and Pippin trapped by large, black Orcs. One raised its axe to bring it down on their heads.

Boromir had his sword out and charged up the hill. He blocked the stroke and killed the Orc. Behind him was Ricky, both daggers drawn and a snarl on his face. The two began cutting down the Orcs, protecting Merry and Pippin.

"Move! Move!" Ricky motioned with one hand at the Hobbits.

"Run!" Boromir called to them.

The Hobbits retreated, still keeping close to Ricky and Boromir.

"What the hell are they?" yelled Ricky.

One Orc had a white hand painted on its chest. It spoke. "We are the fighting Uruk-hai. We are the servants of Saruman the Wise, The White Hand: The Hand that gives us man's flesh to eat. We came out of Isengard!"

It was abruptly cut off when Ricky rolled across the ground and jumped up, slamming his dagger into its throat.

"Dat's enough outta you."

Boromir blew his horn. It was three short blasts and Ricky could only think S.O.S.

Ricky killed another Uruk.

Boromir flipped one onto its back before stabbing it. He blew his horn again.

By this time, Merry and Pippin had their small swords out and were fighting alongside Boromir and Ricky.

More Uruk-hai came over the hill in front of them.

"Run!" Boromir ordered. "Run!" He cut off another Uruk's arms before finishing it.

Merry and Pippin retreated while Boromir and Ricky held their ground. The Hobbits grabbed rocks and started pelting the armored head of the Uruk-hai with them.

Ricky was using every trick he knew. He would duck, jump, tumble, anything to get a shot in. Their armor was thick, but weak at the joints. Ricky's best chance for a kill was the throat, which was difficult because he was much shorter than them.

Ricky looked through the mass of Uruk-hai and saw one at the top of the hill with a bow, aiming at them. He looked to see where the arrow was aimed.

"Oh, shit! Boromir!"

Boromir took an arrow in the left shoulder. He sank to his knees.

Merry and Pippin froze in shock.

Ricky was the only one still moving, ducking under a shield and shoving a dagger through an eye. Boromir's injury only spurred Ricky on.

Boromir got to his feet and continued to fight.

Ricky looked up and saw the Uruk coming down from the hill with a bow in its hands. It was drawing an arrow out of its quiver.

"Shit!" Ricky swore again.

The Uruk fired and a second arrow lodged itself in Boromir's abdomen.

Boromir dropped to his knees and looked at the Hobbits. The shock and fear on their innocent faces was clear. Boromir got back up and took down two more Uruk-hai.

Ricky was forcing his way through the Uruk-hai, determined to get to the Uruk archer before it could fire off a third arrow. He could see it was already readying a third arrow. He used all of his strength to shove the Uruk he was fighting into the path of the arrow. It was a direct hit, killing the Uruk instantly.

Though the arrow did not strike him, Boromir went down on his knees for a third time.

Merry and Pippin let out battle cries and charged. The Uruk-hai picked them up and carried them off. Ricky was grabbed as well. His daggers were tossed away. He fought and cursed as he was taken with the Hobbits. Boromir could only watch as they were taken.

The Uruk archer was the only one left. It stood several paces in front of Boromir with his bow aimed at him, intent on killing him. Boromir stared up at it, knowing it was over.

Aragorn came charging into the clearing with his sword in hand. He tackled the Uruk to the ground. They got up and their swords clashed. The Uruk threw Aragorn back against a tree. It threw its shield, the prongs at the bottom embedding into the tree trunk and pinning Aragorn to the tree at the neck. The Uruk ran up to him to cut his head off. Aragorn managed to slip his head under the shield. He kicked the Uruk, but it kicked him harder, knocking him to the ground. It raised its wicked sword over his head. Aragorn rolled and kicked the Uruk again. He drew the dagger Celeborn gave him and stabbed the Uruk in the thigh.

The Uruk roared in pain and punched Aragorn. It picked him up and head-butted him and punched him again. It pulled the dagger out of its thigh with a roar. Aragorn looked up. The Uruk made a show out of licking its blood of the dagger before throwing it at Aragorn. Aragorn batted it away with his sword.

The Uruk picked up its sword and the two blades met again. Aragorn fought hard and cut off the Uruk's sword arm and stabbed it through the stomach. The Uruk snarled and reached out with its remaining arm. It pulled itself down the length of Aragorn's sword and growled in his face. Aragorn pulled his sword out and decapitated the Uruk.

Aragorn ran back to Boromir, who was now lying on his back, gasping for air.

"They took the little ones and Ricky," he said urgently.

"Be still," Aragorn told him gently, trying to stop the worst of the bleeding; the arrow wound in the abdomen.

"Frodo? Where is Frodo?" Boromir asked.

"I let Frodo go," Aragorn answered.

"Then you did what I could not. I tried to take the Ring from him."

"The Ring is beyond our reach now," Aragorn told him.

"Forgive me," said Boromir. "I did not see. I have failed you."

"No, Boromir," said Aragorn. "You fought bravely. You have kept your honor."

Aragorn looked at the wound.

"Leave it," said Boromir. "It is over. The world of Men will fall and all will come to darkness and my city to ruin."

Aragorn shifted his hands to keep pressure on Boromir's wound. "I do not know what strength is in my blood, but I swear to you . . . I will not let the White City fall, nor our people fail."

"Our people," gasped Boromir. "Our people."

Aragorn looked to see what else he could do at the moment for the arrow wounds.

"She said that I had the chance to see the hope I could not see," Boromir said.

Aragorn's head snapped up to Boromir's face. He immediately remembered Galadriel's gift to Boromir. Aragorn reached down and took the pouch with the gold charm from Boromir's belt.

"This is Elvish medicine," Aragorn gasped, looking into the pouch. "Powerful medicine! Her gift to you was great indeed!"

Boromir shook his head. "Go after the Hobbits and Ricky. I would have followed you, my brother . . . my captain, my king."

"And you will follow," Aragorn promised. "You will live. You are strong. We will rescue Merry, Pippin, and Ricky. But we will help you first."

Aragorn looked behind him and saw Legolas and Gimli looking on from a distance. "Legolas, I need boiled water and bandages."

Legolas dashed off to get the items. A few minutes later he returned with bandages and the kettle of water that had been left by the fire before they were attacked.

Aragorn set to work on removing the arrow in Boromir's chest. "Hold him."

Legolas and Gimli helped to hold Boromir still as Aragorn removed the arrow.

It took two hours to get Boromir stable. The arrows were difficult to remove and they were fighting to stop the blood loss. The medicine stopped the bleeding the moment it was applied and was already closing the skin.

Legolas noticed something glimmer in the dirt. Aragorn did not need him at the moment, so Legolas went to see what it was. Laying in the dirt were a pair of daggers. Legolas picked up Ricky's daggers and slipped them in his belt.

Once Boromir's wounds were bandaged, they moved him back to the river to his bedroll.

"We need to hurry," said Legolas. "Frodo and Sam have already reach the eastern shore. If we are quick, we will catch Frodo and Sam before nightfall."

Aragorn said nothing, only knelt over Boromir, trying to get him comfortable.

Boromir looked up weakly at him. "Go," he whispered.

Aragorn looked across the river at the white boat being pulled up on shore and the two Hobbits running. He made no reaction to the scene.

"You mean not to follow them," Legolas realized.

"Frodo's fate is no longer in our hands," said Aragorn.

"Then it has all been in vain," Gimli said. "The Fellowship has failed."

Aragorn stood. He moved over to Legolas and Gimli and put his hands on their shoulders. "Not if we hold true to each other. We will not abandon Ricky, Merry, and Pippin to torment and death, not while we have strength left."

"I will not be able to follow," Boromir called weakly.

They turned to him.

"No," said Aragorn. "You will take the river to Osgiliath. Legolas and I will get one of the boats over the falls. We will carry you to it."

"That will take hours," Boromir protested.

Aragorn shook his head. "They look for your coming from the White Tower. Legolas."

"I will wait at the foot of the falls," Legolas said. He gathered up Merry, Pippin, and Ricky's packs. There was plenty of food and other supplies. "Wait one hour and send the boat over."

"Will the boat survive going over the falls?" Gimli asked, watching Legolas run off.

"These are Elvish vessels, Gimli," Aragorn explained. "They do not sink easily."

Gimli grunted disbelievingly.

Aragorn sat next to Boromir. "Legolas took Merry, Pippin, and Ricky's packs with him. You will have plenty of food. I will check your wounds before we send you off. Hopefully, you will not need your bandages changed until you reach Osgiliath. There is always the risk of fever."

"I live now," Boromir said. "I will not succumb to fever."

"Rest now, Boromir," Aragorn insisted. "We will wake you when we are ready to move you."

Boromir closed his eyes.

Aragorn sent the boat over and hour later and Legolas returned after pulling the boat ashore. In the meantime, Aragorn and Gimli made a litter to transport Boromir and packed up the rest of camp. It was tricky getting Boromir down the almost sheer cliff of the falls.

Aragorn checked Boromir's wounds one last time. "The bleeding has stopped. How are you feeling?"

"Tired," Boromir replied. "I will not be able to paddle."

Aragorn gave an understanding nod. "Let the current take you. If you feel strong enough, paddle only when you must. Do not stop until you get to Osgiliath."

Boromir nodded. "You should wear something of our people." He fumbled with the leather bracers on his arms.

Aragorn removed them and put them on his own arms.

Boromir smiled. "Now you are beginning to look like the King of Gondor."

Aragorn leaned down and gave a kiss on Boromir's brow. "Safe passage, Boromir."

They put him in the boat and shoved it off.

Aragorn turned to Legolas and Gimli. "Leave all that can be spared behind. We travel light. Let's hunt some Orc."

Gimli cheered. "Yes! Ha!"

The three ran off in the direction the Uruk-hai went.

* * *

Frodo and Sam stood atop of a high ridge. Before them were the saw-tooth mountains and beyond that was the black sky. Black smoke rose from behind the mountains.

"Mordor!" said Frodo. "I hope the others find a safer road."

"Strider'll look after them," Sam said simply.

"I don't suppose we'll ever see them again."

"We may yet, Mr. Frodo. We may."

"Sam?" Frodo turned to Sam with an affectionate smile. "I'm glad you're with me."

They both smiled and continued their journey.

* * *

 **And the first movie ends here. I actually finished editing this chapter on my smart phone and it's not the best tool to edit with, so please forgive me if a line break looks weird. I'll fix it when I get to a real computer.**

 **Quotes/songs are from Within Temptation "The Last Dance" and Disturbed "The Light".**


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